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THE LIFE OF 
ARTEMAS WARD 




Artemas WXr 



Al the up^e oi SixJy-Seremi 



'■y^.'m 4fu /..y^,/ Sy ^,^,^ %-^^^ ^^^^ .^ .^^4/,.We^^.. %aCi. 



THE LIFE 

OF 

ARTEMAS WARD 

THE FIRST COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF 
OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION 



A man "universally esteemed, beloved 
and confided in by his army and their 
country." — John Adams, 



BY 

CHARLES MARTYN 



NEW YORK 

ARTEMAS WARD 
1921 



£207 
WzM3f 



Copyright, 1921, by 
Artemas Ward 



AUG-rZI 

0)CI.A622289 



w^^T. I 



CONTENTS 

CHAPTER PAGE 

I The Birth of Artemas Ward. His Boyhood 3 

II 1 744-1 763. At Harvard College. The 

First Years of His Public Career . . 7 

III February, 1 763-MAY, 1774. The Stamp Act 

Brings Ward into Prominence as a "Pa- 
triot." The Growth of Resistance to 
the Authority of the English Parlia- 
ment 30 

IV May id, 1774-ApRiL 19, 1775. Moving To- 

ward Rebellion. Ward Appointed Sec- 
ond General Officer. The Battle of 
April 19 S5 

v April 20- June 15, 1775. The Siege of Bos- 
ton. Ward Commander-in-chief of the 
First Army of the Revolution ... 89 

VI June 16-17, 1775. The Battle of Bunker 

Hill 122 

VII Criticisms of the Battle of Bunker Hill . 139 

VIII June i8-July 3, 1775. The Siege of Boston 

after the Battle of Bunker Hill . . 144 

IX Criticisms of Ward as Commander-in-chief 154 

X July 4, 1775-jANUARY 15, 1776. The Siege 

OF Boston after Washington's Arrival 165 

XI January 16, 1776-MARCH 27, 1776. The 
Fortification of Dorchester Heights. 
The Evacuation of Boston . . . .190 



vl CONTENTS 

CHAPTER PAGE 

XII March i8, 1776-MARCH 20, 1777. Ward in 

Command of the Eastern Department . 216 

XIII 1 777-1 783. The Strain of the Long War. 

The Conclusion of Peace 241 

XIV 1784-1787. Shays' Rebellion .... 272 

XV 1 787-1 800. Ward as a Federalist in the 
United States Congress. His Retirement 
from Public Life. His Death . . . 300 



ILLUSTRATIONS 

Artemas Ward at the age of sixty-seven . . Frontispiece 

From the portrait by Charles TFillson Peale in Independence Hall. 

FACING PAGE 

The questions to be debated by the candidates for the 

degree of A.M., Harvard College, 175 i . . . 10 

Hastings' House (the "Holmes House"), headquarters 
of General Ward and the Committee of Safety 
during the first months of the siege of Boston . . 90 

Boston and its environs in 1775 (map) .... 92 

The first American resolution for the seizure of Dor- 
chester Neck, May 9, 1775 102 

Ward's letter to President Joseph Warren urging the 

Provincial Congress to action, May 19, 1775 . 108 

Ward's commission as Commander-in-chief of the 

Massachusetts forces 108 

The resolution of the Council of War, June 15, 1775, 

to occupy both Bunker Llill and Dorchester Neck 118 

Ward's order for the relief of the Bunker Hill de- 
tachment 124 

Ward's demand that the troops be protected from the 

weather 146 

President Hancock's letter transmitting Ward's com- 
mission as First Major-General of the continental 
army 150 

Ward's letter accepting his commission as First Major- 
General of the continental army 150 



vili ILLUSTRATIONS 

FACING PAGE 

Ward's order for the fortification of Dorchester Heights 202 

Colonel Whitcomb's letter telling of the expulsion of 

the English ships from Boston harbor . . . 226 

The Artemas Ward House, Shrewsbury, Mass. . .282 

Governor Bowdoin's letter asking Ward's advice on the 

suppression of Shays' Rebellion 294 

The Artemas Ward Memorial Entrance, Mountain 

View Cemetery, Shrewsbury, Mass 322 



PUBLISHER'S PREFACE 

FROM my childhood I had hoped to write the biography 
of my great-grandfather, Artemas Ward, the first com- 
mander-in-chief of the American Revolution, and I have 
always promised myself that some day I would publish a 
life story that would give him his rightful place among 
Revolutionary leaders. 

I have not been alone in my uneasy conviction that 
Artemas Ward's memory has been unjustly neglected. 
Others, though lacking the impulse of relationship, have felt 
that in the history of the founding of the United States 
there is a blank that should be filled with the story of his 
life. Even so long as eighty-one years ago, Emory Wash- 
burn expressed a hope that some one would "yet" prepare 
a biography of General Ward that would "do justice to 
the memory of one of the earliest and bravest of the patriots 
of the Revolution." 

If a commonplace biography would have contented me, 
it could have been produced very easily by interweaving some 
of the original material in the Artemas Ward Manuscripts 
with a conventional account of the American Revolution and 
the establishment of the United States, but I had no desire 
to write or publish such a biography. 

To accomplish what I desired involved a great amount 
of research — it was plainly a labor of years. I continually 
hoped to be able to set aside all other claims upon my time 
and to devote my whole attention to the task, but the op- 
portunity always evaded me, and, finally, I turned to Mr. 
Charles Martyn and commissioned him to do the research 
for me. I knew that he would spare no effort in the hunt 



X PUBLISHER'S PREFACE 

for original pertinent material, and, further, that there was 
not the slightest danger that he would gild a point or dodge 
an issue for the sake of making a palatable story. 

In giving this commission, my intention had been to write 
the biography myself on the foundation of the material that 
Mr. Martyn should gather, but as he progressed and turned 
up record after record that threw new light on the ancestor 
whom I so greatly admire, and from these records pre- 
sented me with a living portrait of Artemas Ward as his 
contemporaries knew him, I increasingly felt that his memory 
would be better served If his biography were written by the 
man who had made so intensive a study of his career. 

Therefore I finally decided to entrust the entire work 
to Mr. Martyn, and I feel that this volume Is both my 
justification and reward. Its accuracy. Its completeness, and 
its many newly presented points will, I am confident, win 
for it a permanent place among standard histories. I do 
not think that any reader will take exception to the statement 
that no one can obtain a correct understanding of the siege 
of Boston unless he supplements other authorities with a 
perusal of the several chapters devoted to it In this biography. 

Artemas Ward. 



INTRODUCTION 

THIS volume, modest though its size, represents a great 
deal of labor. It has involved a personal scrutiny of 
the original official records of half a century, and of a great 
quantity of other material, printed and manuscript, in scores 
of public and private depositories. 

Its story is of the high elevation of an eighteenth-century 
Massachusetts country-township leader. In Artemas Ward it 
presents a type as clear-cut and distinct as that of the Samuel 
Adams of the Boston town-meeting and the wealthy Wash- 
ington of Virginia; and it tells of a life lived in the strength 
of an unquestioning faith in the Puritan religion, of an in- 
telligence of high order "directed chiefly to the practical 
interests of mankind," of a character distinguished by in- 
dustry, and patience, and forgetfulness of self, by tenacity of 
conviction and complete integrity. 

I have worked throughout with the intent to produce a 
biography faithful to accuracy. I have kept ever in mind 
the title of historians and students to the full evidence with- 
out interpolation, omission, or evasion; and I have ruth- 
lessly discarded pleasing family traditions except when I 
have found them to be supported by impartial authorities. 

I gratefully acknowledge the invaluable assistance of 
many individuals. 

Chief among them is Mr. Artemas Ward of New York, 
publisher of the biography, whose whole-hearted cooperation 
has been extended every step of the way, who stimulated 
enthusiasm when the task grew wearisome — who never be- 
grudged expense, and who sturdily agreed with me on an 



xii INTRODUCTION 

unswerving policy of tiie truth, — only the truths — and the 
whole truth. 

Next came Miss Clara Denny Ward of Shrewsbury, 
Mass., custodian of the Artemas Ward Manuscripts. It 
is my one regret that she did not survive to read the story 
in which she was so keenly interested. 

Lengthening the list are the other descendants of General 
Ward who opened family collections for my use, and officers 
of archives, historical societies, and libraries. 

A great deal of my material was obtained from the rich 
store of manuscripts in the Massachusetts Archives. Most of 
my research there was done while Mr. James J. Tracy was 
Chief, and he accorded me every possible aid and facility. 
I found the same earnest effort to be of service when Mr. 
John H. Edmonds succeeded Mr. Tracy. A special tribute 
is due to Miss Alice R. Farnum, First Assistant, for much 
long-continued painstaking investigation. 

I have frequently delved also in the collections of the 
Massachusetts Historical Society and the American An- 
tiquarian Society; and Mr. Julius H. Tuttle, librarian of the 
former, and Mr. Clarence S. Brigham, librarian of the lat- 
ter, have always met me with most kindly helpfulness. 

I have, in addition, spent months in the New York Pub- 
lic Library and have enjoyed the consistent courtesy of its 
officials; and I have been the recipient of many favors from 
the Manuscript Division of the Library of Congress, from 
the Boston Public Library, and from Mr. William C. Lane, 
librarian of Harvard College. 

Finally, I acknowledge my indebtedness to Lord Dart- 
mouth, great-great-grandson of the Lord Dartmouth of this 
biography, for generously free access to the famous Dart- 
mouth Manuscripts; and to Mrs. Harriette M. Forbes for 
having placed at my service the manuscript of her forthcom- 
ing Bibliography of Early New England Diaries. 

For the convenience of students and in support of state- 
ments, I have given copious references, except that I have 



INTRODUCTION xiii 

omitted all references to executive and legislative journals. 
Every statement made of the proceedings of the Massachu- 
setts General Court, the Provincial Congresses, the Conti- 
nental Congress, and the United States Congress has — 
unless otherwise especially noted — been taken from the 
official journals, and, being dated, can be found almost as 
easily without, as with, page numbers. To have given refer- 
ences for all such statements would have greatly Increased the 
number of foot-notes, and would have been of only trifling 
assistance to students. 

Charles Martyn. 



ARTEMAS WARD 



CHAPTER I 

The Birth of Artemas Ward. His Boyhood 

MASSACHUSETTS was in the throes of a religious 
awakening when on Sunday, November 26/ 1727, in 
the new settlement of Shrewsbury, a boy was born "unto 
Nahum Ward and Martha, his wife." They christened him 
"Artemas," having drawn the name from the Bible in the old 
New England way. This book is his biography. 

In 1727 we are still but a little way beyond our first century 
in North America. 

The English colonies have waxed strong despite their 
losses and tribulations in conflict with nature, the French, and 
the Indians; despite their struggles with fiscal problems; de- 
spite the mixed blessings of the Imperial control of the seven- 
teenth (and eighteenth) centuries. Their farms and planta- 
tions are productive, their ships and boats are many, and their 
commerce has steadily grown. 

Their dominion comprises, however, a mere ribbon of ter- 
ritory along the Atlantic seaboard. And if one add to it the 
French settlements and outposts to the north and west, and 
the Spanish efforts to the south and southwest, the total thus 
attained of all the works of European hands and brains on 
the North American continent is still utterly overshadowed 
by the immensity of the unconquered spaces — the millions of 
miles of wild land peopled by savages. The French and 
English bloodily disputed the ownership of a continent 
upon whose surface all their forces were but as toy soldiers 
on a prairie. 

^ Shreivsbury Town Meeting Records, I, 300. Not November 27, as generally stated. 



4 ARTEMAS WARD 

This was less than two hundred years ago — yet there are 
today within the United States a number of cities which have 
each a greater population than the total, then, of all the white 
people in North America. 

The house in which Artemas Ward was born, and in which 
he grew to manhood, stood back from the Connecticut Road 
— later known as the Great Country Road (frequently ab- 
breviated to the Great Road or the Country Road), the Post 
Road, the County Road, and (now) the State Road — nearly 
opposite the present Artemas Ward House. It was a square 
frame structure, with a big stone chimney and home-hewn 
oaken timbers.^ 

His father — known generally at that time as "Lieutenant 
Ward" from his militia rank — was a man of importance 
in the little group of farmers which constituted the Shrews- 
bury community. He had been one of the founders of the 
township — as, early in the history of New England, his grand- 
father, William Ward, a Puritan exodist, had shared in the 
founding of Sudbury and Marlboro. He was Shrewsbury's 
first moderator and its first selectman, and, as years went by, 
he filled every other town office — sometimes several of them 
simultaneously. On the incorporation of Worcester County, 
he became a justice of the peace and was admitted to the bar. 
Later, he was commissioned as a colonel in the colony service 
and a judge of the Court of Common Pleas. As a youth he 
had followed the sea, and as a young man in his early twen- 
ties he had been master of a merchantman in the West Indian 
service. 

Lieutenant Ward's wife, Martha, was a daughter of Cap- 
tain Daniel How and Elizabeth Kerley. She was his first 
cousin, once removed: a great-granddaughter of William 
Ward, the exodist, through his daughter Hannah, and a 
granddaughter of Abraham How, another of the early "pro- 
prietors" of Marlboro. 

'After the death (1754) of Nahum Ward, the house was sold to Henry Baldwin and 
achieved local fame as the Baldwin Tavern. 



HIS BOYHOOD 5 

The child life of little Artemas was that of the average 
eighteenth-century Massachusetts country boy in a family of 
comfortable circumstances. He was one of six children: four 
of them older, one of them younger. He attended school dur- 
ing the short periods that "school kept" in Shrewsbury, and 
supplemented this instruction by home studies under the / 
supervision of the minister, the Reverend Job Gushing; he did 
his share of the farm chores; he got into a moderate amount 
of boyish mischief. He rode to the neighboring towns on his 
father's errands : with greatest frequency to the little county- 
town, Worcester. As his penmanship acquired neatness and 
steadiness, he helped his father in the filling out of writs and 
other legal papers — an apprenticeship to the judicial career 
which later so well became him. And on the Sabbath he sat 
and stood through the long sermons and long prayers which 
consumed the greater part of the day. 

Nor, for their influence on an imaginative young mind, let 
us forget the evenings of the New England winters as the fam- 
ily sat within the glow of the big log fire, and Lieutenant Ward 
(or Colonel Ward, as his father became while Artemas was 
still a small boy) told of the dangers and adventures and 
hardships encountered and overcome during the first century 
of the history of Massachusetts: dwelling much on the early 
Puritan days, and what had been lost, and what had been 
saved, of their works and faith; and recounting tales of the 
French and Indian wars which had blazed and devastated. 

He told of his grandfather's house in Marlboro, garri- 
soned as a fort in King Philip's War; and of his uncle, 
Eleazer, who in the same conflict was killed by Indians on the 
highway between Marlboro and Sudbury. Of the township 
of Worcester, only five miles away, twice abandoned because 
of the redskin danger: Lieutenant Ward was twenty-nine 
years of age when it was finally resettled in 17 13, and for yet 
another dozen years It was intermittently in peril of being 
again blotted out. Of the slaying or capture of his brother 
Elisha by Indians, and how his mother never gave up hope of 



6 ARTEMAS WARD 

Elisha's return: when she died, eleven years later, her will 
contained a remembrance for him If he "shall ever come 
again." Of other relatives and many friends who had lost 
their lives In frontier skirmishes or along the Indian trail. 

Thus the boy grew up, the history of an eventful century 
strong in his ears and mind, and blending therein with the 
lore of township and provincial politics universally and per- 
petually discussed by those around him. 

As he passed Into his teens the development of his charac- 
ter set him somewhat apart from his brothers, and suggested 
and justified his father's decision to send him to Harvard 
College. So to the Reverend Gushing was assigned the duty 
of preparing him for entrance. 

For home reading, he had the benefit of his father's library 
— twoscore books and several dozen pamphlets, chiefly on 
religious subjects and the law; a very small library by modern 
standards, but much above the average of the time. 



CHAPTER II 

1744-1763: Age 16-33 

Enters Harvard College 1744. Is graduated, A.B., 1748. Goes to 
Groton to "teach school." Returns to Shrewsbury and opens a 
general store. Marries Sarah Trowbridge. Elected to various 
township offices. Commissioned as Justice of the Peace. A.M., 
1 75 1. Captain and Major in the county militia. Elected Repre- 
sentative for Shrewsbury, and repeatedly reelected. Marches on 
the alarm after the capture of Fort William Henry by the French. 
Major in a regiment raised for the Ticonderoga campaign. Pro- 
moted to Lieutenant-Colonel. The Battle of Ticonderoga. Com- 
missioned as Colonel. Appointed Judge of the Court of Common 
Pleas for Worcester County. Moves his family into the "Old 
Part" of the present Artemas Ward House. 

THE full chronicle of the life of Artemas Ward com- 
mences with his admission to Harvard College In 1744. 
He was then sixteen years old. Prior to that time, testimony 
is scant; after It, his footsteps may be clearly followed. 

The tutor for Ward's class was Thomas Marsh, a gradu- 
ate of 1 73 1. From 1737 to 1741 he had been college libra- 
rian and In 1755 he became a Fellow of the Corporation. 

Marsh, as was then the custom at Harvard, took his class 
through the entire course from freshman to senior, except- 
ing divinity, Hebrew, higher mathematics, astronomy, and 
natural philosophy. It was not until 1767 that the four 
tutors began to divide the subjects Instead of the pupils they 
taught. 

Much time was spent on theology and the classics, and 
Hebrew was an Important Item of the curriculum. 

The Professor of Divinity was the Reverend Edward 
Wigglesworth, of the class of 17 10 and S.T.D. Edinburgh 

7 



8 ARTEMAS WARD [Age 16-20 

University, 1730. Higher mathematics, natural philosophy, 
and astronomy were taught by Professor John Winthrop, 
1732, a man of broad acquirements who became an 
authority on astronomy and seismology. Hebrew classes 
were conducted by Judah Monis, a converted Jew of Italian 
birth who served as a Harvard instructor for nearly forty 
years. 

In Ward's day the number of students at Harvard aver- 
aged about a hundred, against the several thousands of 
recent years. 

Customs differed also — the breakfast served at Commons 
then consisted of bread and a "cue of beer" I Equally dis- 
tinctive was the "placing" of students by the social rank of 
their famihes — a custom closely related to the New England 
practice of "dignifying" the meeting-house. The stations 
thus assigned held good everywhere within college jurisdic- 
tion: in chapel, at recitations, at Commons, etc. Of the 
twenty-nine freshmen of 1744, Ward was "placed" as sev- 
enth. 

Ward's record at college is very clean. During his term a 
number of the students were brought before the faculty on 
various charges, — for not returning on time at the close of 
vacations, for drinking liquors, for being absent from Com- 
mons without leave, and for disorderly conduct of various 
degrees, — but Ward's name never appears among the delin- 
quents. 

In 1747 (November 21), a senior sophlster, he Is second 
on the list of twenty-two students who volunteered to assist 
the president of the college in a crusade against "swearing 
and cursing." 

Profanity was a common falling of the times. In later 
years, as justice of the peace. Ward Individually supple- 
mented this students' crusade by fines freely and frequently 
laid upon offenders 1 

Those twenty-two student volunteers held no conception of 
profanity as merely "disorderly speech" or "vulgarity." For 



1744-1748'] AT HARVARD COLLEGE 9 

them, it held its original significance in the fullest force : it 
was a sinful taking in vain of "the great and holy name of 
God"; a breach of one of the Commandments on which their 
forefathers had founded the laws of a new country; a crime 
against their supreme Sovereign, the dread Ruler of the uni- 
verse. The Puritan religion had lost its earlier harsh inhu- 
manity and had dropped much of its bigotry, but it remained 
a very virile creed, not at all given to euphemistic glossing. 

Ward was between twenty and twenty-one years of age 
when he was graduated on July 6, 1748. A great occasion 
for him and his classmates when they marched, two abreast, 
to the meeting-house to receive their Bachelor degrees.^ And 
the little town of Cambridge echoed the thought, for it over- 
flowed with dignitaries and lesser visitors from far and near. 
Commencement Day being then the chief of Massachusetts 
holidays. 

Four of Ward's classmates were to achieve political promi- 
nence in the province. Two of them took their stand on the 
patriot side when the break came; two of them adhered to the 
tory, or prerogative, party. 

After graduation Ward went to Groton, Mass., to "teach 
school." 

He boarded with the Groton minister, the Reverend Caleb 
Trowbridge, well known in his own right and with a wife who 
represented a line of famous Massachusetts theologians: she 
was a daughter of the Reverend Nehemiah Walter, a grand- 
daughter of the Reverend Increase Mather, and a great- 
granddaughter of the Reverend John Cotton. 

^ Because no names are attached to the theses by the candidates for the Bachelor's 
degree, it is impossible to determine which was Ward's, but in 1751 when he came up 
for his Master's degree he was Affirmat Respondens on the Quaes tio, "An conscientia 
constituat Identitatem personalem." 

The defense of theses by A.B. candidates, and of the positions assumed on quaestlones 
by A.M. candidates, had descended as a custom from previous generations. Each candi- 
date was supposed to be ready to uphold his proposition or standpoint, but in the course 
of time it had come about that in most cases the listing was both the beginning and the 
end of the subject: he was an exceptional candidate who spoke at the commencement exer- 
cises. Ward was one of the exceptions in 1751 — he was one of the three candidates for 
the Master's degree who actually defended their standpoints. The other two were Perez 
Marsh and Thomas Sanders. 



lo ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 20-23 

The Trowbridge house, a square two-story building, then 
stood on the site of the present High School. 

Young Ward's room was on the second floor rear, over- 
looking the meadow which stretched away from the base of 
the high ground of the house location. Within easy range 
was a pond which attracted wild ducks on their migrations. 
The tradition is that the young school-teacher — at a future 
year to be the first commander-in-chief of the American Revo- 
lution — used to amuse himself by "potting" ducks from his 
chamber window. 

Not all of his spare moments were, however, devoted to 
duck shooting, or otherwise spent in the privacy of his own 
room. Some were given to courtship, for it was not long be- 
fore he found himself attracted to the minister's oldest daugh- 
ter, Sarah, a young woman of twenty-five years, three years 
his senior. 

There remains no description of Sarah Trowbridge as a 
girl, but as remembered in later life she was a "calm, self- 
possessed woman." Family tradition has it that she "in- 
herited some of the firm characteristics of her Mather ances- 
tors." Her strength of mind was probably pleasing to 
Artemas Ward, for there was nothing light or frivolous in 
his composition I 

With matrimony in prospect Ward resigned his position as 
schoolmaster and returned to Shrewsbury early in 1750 to 
establish himself in the house known to tradition both as the 
Yellow House and the (first) Sumner House, standing 
westerly of the meeting-house and facing toward the Great 
Country Road. 

The boundaries of the property, of inverted-L shape, 
enclosed about thirty-four acres of farm-land, fronting about 
five hundred feet on the road.^ 

^ The Yellow House and farm were purchased by his father, Colonel Nahum Ward, 
in three lots on April 4 and 7, 1750: the house, two acres of land, and a barn on the 
adjoining "meeting-house land," from Moses Hastings ; about nine acres to the west and 
north of the Hastings plot, from Asa Bowker; and twenty-three acres adjoining the 



^^^TT T 10 N E S~' 

Fro Modulo Difcutiends, 
SUB REVERENDO 

D. Cubarto l^olpofee, 

COLLEGII-HARV ylRDINI, 

Quod eft, Divina Providentia 

Cantabrigte Nov-Anglorum, 

PRESIDE. 

In Comitiis Publkis a Laurcx MagiftraUs Candidatls, %;>;/. Nonarum ^intilh. 
M D C C L I. 



AN Be,,™, fcu Cont^o Bd|^^ dub. tn..^^^^ ^ S H U T C H I N S O N. 
11. An . M«atu:a. Cc.i-odun, — atje, Jumt.a^poaj,,.r. ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ 3. 
UI. An ul,a Occupatio Ht Rcipobhcx '- ^enefic.d.s^q^^^^^^ U S L E O N A R D. 

IV. An Statu. rivU"^ omtur « PaflU. ^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^ C A R O L U S C H A U N C Y. 

V. An omhU monlu ^eo., morakm LcgJ^^^Wi-^- ^^.g^ur- imoTHEUS PAINE. 

VI. An Confcientia conftituat Identitatem perfonalem. 

jifirmat Rifpcndens ARTEMAS WARD. 
VII An Confifcatlo Bononim Parentis ob Crimen befsc Majertratis, Liberos innocentis Damnum injuftc 

afficiat. Affirmat R,fpcvdi„t JOSEPHUS ADAMS. 

vm. An origoMaU folvi poRit falvls Dei Attnbutij. ,.„,,^„„.,e r-iicuiwr 

^^rmat Rt/pcnJexs JAHAKOBUS GUSHING. 

IX. An Idea adzquiu juftltdc in Deo, a nobis fomari poflit. ^ ,, ^ ,_,_.„ „ r- r^ r^ v r 

Nigct Rtfpondens GULIELMUS COOKL. 

X. An in Amicitii iniquali. fit plus tribuendum et rctribuendum majori, et minus minori. 

Afirmat Rcfpcndtm JONATHAN SEWALL. 

XI. An detur Motuj immediate aVentiiculo ad Veficam. „,^ „.„„,,. omviMc; 

tiigal Rtfpmdcns RICHARDUS PERKINS. 

XII. An PtxTcientia divina loUat Ujertatera agendi. . . ,, „ „ a r n> iir 1 m 

Nigiit Rtfpondens GULIELMUS BALDWIN. 

XIII. An Bellum aliquod fit Juftutn jure Naturae. 

yifirmat Rifpottdcns PEREZ MARSH. 

XIV. An Fides data in imperio civili Magiftratum fummum obliget. 

yiff.rmat RefpofJins THOMAS SANDERS. 

XV. An Vocatio ad Minifterium in Ecclefiu Sacnim hi? Tcmporibus, fit immcdiata. 

h'egat Rt[pQndcns SAMUEL ANGIER. 

I XVI. An Tnnor b Amore neceflaric inCudatur. _„,.,. t, r^ 

Affirmas Rtfpondcr.s SAMUEL WOODWARD. 
XVII. An Decreta divina Cnt omnino abfoluta. „ ,- . vr 

jl^rmat Rffpotdms JOSEPHUS BEAN. 

XVm. An PoGtura humani Corporis crefla, requirat. Pericardium ct ftpium tranvcrfumcoalticcrr. 

Srmat Rifpo:,dins JOHANNES RAND. 

XIX. An Leecs Morales ex relatione entium Neceffario nafcintur. _ „ — 

Jffim^t Re/pondtm THOMAS HIBBERT. 

XX. An Fruftum prohibitum. Mortis Alami fuiffe Caiifam Phyficam, probabik fit. 

Jffinn^! Rrfpo^den JACOBUS HOBBS. 

XXI. An Deuj ex Scipfo CauCditer, i. t. ut a Cauf.i exiftat. _ „ . , ,- 

Ncsil Rtfpondem GEORGIUS LESSLIE. 



HisSuccedit O R ATI O Valediaoria. 



From an original (9^/^ X IS^^) in Harvard College Library 

THE QUESTIONS TO BE DEBATED BY THE CANDIDATES 
FOR THE DEGREE OF A.M., HARVARD COLLEGE, 1751 



174S-1751'] BEGINNING OF PUBLIC CAREER 11 

The house had a rear lean-to which had been used as a 
shoemaker's shop, and in this, on April 21, Ward opened a 
small general store. His stock ranged from dry-goods to 
rum. 

Rum, be it remembered, was then an article of thoroughly 
good standing in New England, and a part of every man's 
diet, whether preacher or layman; as essential at church-rais- 
ings and ordinations as on strictly secular occasions. "Tem- 
perance societies" did not come into being for another half 
century, and total abstinence and prohibition were still longer 
delayed. 

Most of his accounts were with men of Shrewsbury; a few 
were with residents of neighboring towns. 

Some of his customers paid in cash. Others by merchan- 
dise — homespun cloth, "cyder," fish, etc.; or in labor — "mak- 
ing a saw, staples, etc.," "making a pair of [leather] 
breeches," "dressing one deer skin," carting, etc. 

His marriage quickly succeeded the opening of his store. 
It was solemnized on July 31 at the Trowbridge home In 
Groton. 

The following spring (March 4, 1751) the Shrewsbury 
farmers made him tax assessor — the first of his many civic 
appointments, and an ofl'ice to which he was reelected a 
score of times. 

Three months later (June 22), though only twenty-three 
years old, he entered upon his long service as justice of the 
peace — an official of dignity and importance in that genera- 
tion. It was undoubtedly with much pride that he received 
his commission issued "By order of the Lieutenant-Governor 
with the Advice and Consent of the Council" : an imposing 
document with its round red seal, its conventional "greeting" 
by "George the Second, By the Grace of God, of Great 

Bowker plot on the north, from Moses Hastings. The house stood a little to the west of 
the original structure of the present Sumner House, and nearer the road. 

Three years later (February 15, 1753), Colonel Ward transferred the property as 
a gift to Artemas Ward ("in consideration of the love, good will and affection which 
I have and do bear towards my well beloved son Artemas Ward"). 



12 ARTEMAS WARD [Age 24-27 

Britain, France, and Ireland, KING, Defender of the Faith, 
etc.," and its signature by Spencer Phips, Lieutenant-Gov- 
ernor and Commander-in-chief of the Province of the 
Massachusetts Bay. 

The next year (1752) the town clerk's duties were added 
to his responsibilities, and he was also voted into the full 
dignity of a selectman: his first of twenty terms as such. 

These township offices developed and shaped Ward's 
character and career. 

Of special influence was the experience gained as one of 
the selectmen, — the executive officers of the township, — for he 
thus encountered the many-sided problems of human govern- 
ment. 

Improving this experience was that as justice of the peace: 
both locally and in General Sessions at Worcester. The sit- 
ting-room of the Yellow House was his home court, and in it 
he married many couples, tried a large class of minor offend- 
ers, and balanced the scales of justice between disputant 
neighbors. 

By province laws a justice of the peace had wide discre- 
tion In many cases — up to the point of sentencing a culprit 
to be whipped or to be put in the stocks. Drunkards, pro- 
faners of the Sabbath, and peace breakers were among those 
who could thus be punished. 

A "profaner of the Sabbath" included any rash or self- 
indulgent person who essayed to travel on Sunday except on 
a very real and easily demonstrable emergency. And this 
law was strictly enforced in Shrewsbury — as, generally, in the 
other country districts of Massachusetts. Nor did Ward 
ever relax his early sabbatical vigilance : we find him, a gen- 
eration later, a man of sixty-one years, a general and a chief 
justice, standing in the Shrewsbury highway to halt infractors 
of the Sunday law. 

That these functions as selectman, justice of the peace, 
etc., were performed upon a small stage, gave them addi- 
tional educative value, for the audience sat very close to 



n 52-17 55\ BEGINNING OF PUBLIC CAREER 13 

the actors and was prompt to note and quick to protest any 
false step or sentiment. 

Local opinion was very strong. It was Indeed more than 
that — it was almost omnipotent in local affairs, for the town- 
meeting appointed all town officials and had the making or 
approval of all local laws" and orders, subject only to the 
authority of the General Court ;^ and in town-meeting every 
inhabitant had an equal voice and spoke his mind — proposing, 
arguing, and disputing as his interests and sentiments moved 
him. 

Ward's repeated reelection as selectman and the con- 
tinuous acquiescence of the townspeople in his tenure as jus- 
tice of the peace, testify both to his willingness to assume re- 
sponsibility and to his intelligent grasp of human relations: 
to a knowledge of, and respect for, local needs, sentiments, 
and traditions; and to a reputation for even-handed justice. 

The cumulative responsibilities undertaken also testify to 
the industry which distinguished him. The combination of 
duties, clerical and otherwise, as selectman, town clerk, and 
assessor, added to those of justice of the peace, with the 
incidental drawing up of documents, letters, etc., which ac- 
crued from that office — all imposed upon the conduct of his 
store — must have made him the busiest young man in Shrews- 
bury ! 

On May 7, 1754, his father died, closing a much respected 
and enterprising life at the age of sixty-nine. His will, after 
carefully providing for his widow, divided his estate among 
his four surviving children and his two grandchildren by his 
eldest son Nahum, who had died In 1738. 

Artemas and his brother Elisha were named as executors 
and residuary legatees. 

On January 28 of the following year (1755), Ward was 
commissioned major of the Third Regiment of Militia In 

* "General Court" was the customary abbreviation of "Great and General Court" — the 
title of the Massachusetts legislature under both the first and second charters. With the 
adoption of the state constitution, the abbreviation became the title. 



14 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 29-30 

the counties of Middlesex and Worcester, and captain of 
the First Company in the town of Shrewsbury. 

Two years later (May 16, 1757) he was elected for the 
first of many terms as the township's representative In the 
General Court, and nine days thereafter he was in the capital 
for the short spring session. 

The Boston to which he came as a provincial legislator, 
had led the continent for more than a century. It was only a 
little town of about 16,000 inhabitants, but It hummed with 
trade, and shipping, and shipbuilding. Its social life, too, 
was varied and attractive, and It treasured no small amount 
of luxury in the homes of its many well-to-do citizens. It was 
capable of a substantial brilliancy In display and entertain- 
ment, and on gala dates, such as the anniversary of the 
King's birthday, and Accession and Coronation days, it minia- 
tured London with excellent effect. 

It was at this time even more than ordinarily full of life 
and bustle, its normal industry enhanced by the activities of 
war. The Seven Years' conflict was flaming across the 
civilized world and, crossing the Atlantic, had locked France 
and England in the final struggle for supremacy in North 
America. 

The Representatives' Chamber in which Ward took his seat 
under the carved wooden codfish, was on the second floor of 
the Old State House — the same building which stands today 
at the head of State Street, though then known as the Court 
House, or, locally, as the Town House. 

Ward's assignments during his initial term were confined 
to committees to consider soldiers' petitions. 

In the following August came his first call to arms In the 
excitement which swept Massachusetts on news of the fall of 
Fort William Henry to the French and their Indian allies — 
the story made lurid by the Indian atrocities which stained 
the French victory. 

There was widespread fear that Montcalm would follow 
up his success : first with an assault on Fort Edward and then 



1 7 57-^ 7 5^] THE TICONDEROGA CAMPAIGN 15 

a general eastward invasion. Thousands of militiamen 
grasped their firelocks and marched west and north toward 
the fort to meet the enemy. Among them were Major Ward 
and his companies. 

Montcalm, however, displayed no intent to attack, and 
General Webb, commander at Fort Edward, dispatched 
orders halting all militiamen on their way toward it. So 
Ward marched his men back to their homes after a very 
brief absence. And Montcalm, satisfied with his capture of 
all the supplies at Fort William Henry and his total de- 
struction of the post, retired to Montreal, releasing his 
Canadians for the harvest. 

Ward had thus missed the summer meeting of the legis- 
lature, but he was promptly on hand for the opening of its 
third session on November 23, and during the two months 
following he was again on committees to consider soldiers' 
petitions, and on others respecting army supply claims and 
subsistence payments, and town and guardianship detail. 

He returned to Shrewsbury on January 26, 1758, and 
shortly after was enlisting men for a regiment to be com- 
manded by Colonel William Williams in a new and for- 
midable expedition against the French forces and positions at 
Ticonderoga and Crown Point — designated by Pitt as part of 
his threefold plan for the destruction of French power in 
North America. The Ticonderoga-Crown Point army was 
to be headed by Abercromby, the King's commander-in-chief 
on the continent. 

Ward was commissioned as a major in Williams' regi- 
ment. 

He was in Boston again on March 3 for the opening of 
the last session of the 1757-175 8 legislature. 

On the fourteenth he was named on a committee to exam- 
ine a militia act passed January 25, and "Report whether it 
may not be expedient to suspend the Operation of some 
Parts thereof for some Time, and to prepare the Draught of 
a Vote accordingly." The Abercromby campaign would 



1 6 ARTEMAS WARD [Age 30 

draw so many men away from farms and other callings that 
public opinion was opposed to the further interruption of es- 
sential labor by the general assembling of militia companies 
on "training-days" as required by the act. 

On March 20 the committee reported a bill which the 
governor refused to sign. After much effort, a substitute 
bill came out as Chapter 26, Acts of 1757-1758. 

Three days later, Ward was back in Shrewsbury to con- 
tinue his enlistments. 

The General Court had, on March 17, fixed the rate of 
pay for privates at £1 165. a month. In addition it resolved 
that "each able bodied effective Man who shall voluntarily 
inllst . . . shall be intitled to Thirty Shillings and upon 
his passing Muster shall receive a good Blanket and Fifty 
Shillings more for furnishing himself with Cloaths." 

The Council had, next, on March 25 and 27, "advised and 
consented" that warrants be made out for the payment of 
bounties, but the men's receipts show that in his anxiety to 
fill his companies Ward advanced some of his recruits part of 
their bounty money without waiting for the warrants. 

Notice of the Council's action necessitated a return to 
Boston to draw the first £300 assigned to him. 

With town, legislative, and military duties thus crowding 
his hours, Ward had little time to devote to the less congenial 
vocation of storekeeping, and it is not surprising that his 
profitable merchandise business rapidly fell away during 1757 
and disappeared in May, 1758. Nor did he ever attempt to 
revive it. 

This new "general invasion of Canada" had been planned 
on a large scale, but the preliminary arrangements were 
faulty. Ward was one of nine officers who in April addressed 
Governor Pownall stating that they esteemed it "absolutely 
necessary" to receive a proper equipment of "camp fur- 
niture" — particularly kettles and haversacks; to increase the 
pay offered to surgeons so that men of sufficient ability could 
be obtained; to have an armorer with at least one assistant 



iys8] THE TICONDEROGA CAMPAIGN 17 

for each regiment, as "Upon the Strictest Inquiry we find the 
Provincial Troops may not depend upon the King's Armorers 
for the repair of their Arms" ; to obtain an increase in the 
pay offered to chaplains "in order to engage gentlemen of 
the best character" ; to have a courier to carry dispatches. It 
was also desired that particular care be exercised "that in- 
effective persons may not be suffered to go in the army." 

April saw Ward for a few days in Boston in his seat as 
a Representative, but by the end of the month he was back in 
Shrewsbury to make the final arrangements for his com- 
panies.* 

On May i Colonel Williams dispatched orders^ to "The 
Honble John Wheelwright," Boston, for supplies for his 
regiment. It included one to deliver 

"60 Arms 

228 Blankets 

228 Haversacks To Majr Artemas Ward's Man that 

228 Flasks comes with a Team. Shruesberry." 

42 kettles 

42 axes 

On May 6 Governor Pownall ordered Colonel Williams to 
collect his men without delay and to get everything in readi- 
ness for marching, giving regulations concerning the cartage 
of supplies and the subsistence of the men en route, etc. 

Ward was obliged to make three additional journeys to 
Boston to draw the balance of the £770 12^. bounty money 
for his men and £440 of "billiting" money — the latter an al- 
lowance of sixpence a day for each provincial soldier for sub- 
sistence until his arrival at Northampton, where he would be 
placed on the commissary of the "regulars." 

Ward's very moderate expense account for seven round 

* On April 28 it was ordered in the House "that Capt. Barrett be of the committee 
appointed the 15th of December last on the petition of Jonathan Stone, and others, in 
the Room of Major Ward, who is engaged in the intended Expedition against Canada." 

^Williams Papers, 172, Berkshire Athenaeum, Pittsfield, Mass. 



1 8 ARTEMAS WARD [J^e 30 

trips to Boston on this business (including three trips for the 
vacating of the bonds given) was only £8. 

Then quickly followed orders to march his four companies 
to Worcester and thence to Northampton to join the balance 
of the regiment. 

The military machinery had been cumbrous in getting 
started and the army equipment was still deficient,*^ but the 
expedition was at last officially under way. 

Abercromby had under him the largest army of white 
men ever to that date gathered in a single command on 
American soil: a total of more than 15,000 — 9024 provin- 
cials and 6367 regulars. Among its officers were several who 
were to be closely associated with Ward in later years: 
Charles Lee, four years his junior, captain of a company of 
His Majesty's Grenadiers of the 44th Regiment; and Brig- 
adier-General Timothy Ruggles, Lieutenant-Colonel John 
Whitcomb, Major Israel Putnam, and Captain John Stark 
of the provincial forces. 

Hope and confidence ran high. Success seemed certain. 
Newspapers contained rosy reports of what was going to 
happen at "Ti." 

Those who knew him, held Abercromby in slight respect, 
but that mattered little, for next in command was Lord 
George Howe, beloved and respected by both regulars and 
provincials — a man of high military a°bility and great personal 
charm, blessed with a true understanding of both the value 
and the peculiarities of the colonial troops; a man whose 
adaptability was such that he not only eagerly absorbed what 
provincial leaders could teach him, but, in return, after thus 
learning from them, could devise and impart methods in for- 
est and back-country travel which improved on his instructors. 
There is no danger of over-statement in paying tribute to 

' There was a "great deficiency in the number of Arms belonging to the Province." It 
was hoped to complete the equipment of the regiments out of arms "ordered over by the 
Crown." The latter had, however, not arrived up to May 19 though they were "every 
day expected from Great Britain." — Governor Pownall to Colonel Williams, May 19, 
1758, TF'dUams Papers, 181, Berkshire Athenaeum, Pittsfield, Mass. 



i7SS] THE TICONDEROGA CAMPAIGN 19 

Lord Howe. Contemporary evidence is irresistible. Wolfe 
called him "the noblest Englishman that has appeared in my 
time, and the best soldier in the British army." Pitt spoke of 
him as "a character of ancient times; a complete model of 
military virtue." And in Westminster Abbey stands the 
monument which Massachusetts Bay erected to his memory. 

Major Ward set out with his companies on the morning 
of May 30 and had made the twenty miles to Brookfield be- 
fore sunset. 

His transcript of his diary of the expedition has been pre- 
served.^ It throws no new light on the campaign, but it con- 
tains much interesting detail. 

It records June 17 and 18, after the arrival at Fort 
Edward, the building of a breastwork by his men "on ye west 
end of ye encampment." 

On the day following, the visit of Abercromby and his 
aides-de-camp is noted, and that the general "was pleased 
with Colo. Williams encampment." 

We find a similar entry on June 22 : "Ruggles & Williams's 
Regiment mustered by Brigdr. Genl. Gage who did Colo. 
Williams ye Honor to say was his Regt. in uniform it wo'd 
be one of the finest he ever saw."^ 

June 28, Williams' regiment reached the southern ex- 
tremity of Lake George and encamped there. 

July 2, boats were assigned to the provincial troops to be 
loaded by them with "flour, pork, etc.," for the voyage down 
Lake George toward Ticonderoga. 

July 3, succeeding a parade of all the regiments for a 
general review, Ward was promoted to the rank of lieutenant- 
colonel. 

The next day all "ye heavy baggage" was put on board, 
and the following morning the whole army embarked. 

'Owned (1921) by Florence Ward, Shrewsbury, Mass. 

* Parkman, Montcalm and JFolfe, II, 93, says that the provincials were "uniformed in 
blue," but Ward's diary is evidence that uniforming did not reach to all the Massachusetts 
regiments. 



20 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 30 

"The arrangements were perfect. Each corps marched 
without confusion to its appointed station on the beach, and 
the sun was scarcely above the ridge of French Mountain 
when all were afloat. A spectator watching them from the 
shore says that when the fleet was three miles on its way, 
the surface of the lake at that distance was completely hid- 
den from sight. There were nine hundred bateaux, a hun- 
dred and thirty-five whaleboats, and a large number of heavy 
flatboats carrying the artillery. The whole advanced in three 
divisions, the regulars in the center, and the provincials on 
the flanks. Each corps had its flags and its music. The day 
was fair and men and officers were in the highest spirits."^ 

They rowed northward all that day; and then, as "the 
Genl gave out orders we sho'd push on,"^*^ all the night fol- 
lowing also. 

The "second narrows" was reached at daybreak. A few 
hours later the entire army had debarked at the north end of 
the lake and commenced the march through the forest to lay 
siege to Ticonderoga. Montcalm still held there, though 
debating hourly whether to make a stand — and if so, on what 
line; or whether to abandon the fort in the face of the formid- 
able army coming to its attack. 

The afternoon brought a calamitous victory to the Eng- 
lish — the death of Howe^^ in a blind skirmish with a French 
advance party in the dense thicket. 

The Frenchmen were routed — with many killed and taken 
prisoners, but the English army was thrown completely out 

* Parknian, Montcalm and Tl'olje, II, 92. 

"Colonel Partridge to his wife, July 12, 1758, Israel Williams Papers, II, 77, 
Massachusetts Historical Society. 

'^ The news of the death of Lord Howe was everywhere received as a calamity and 
aroused much apprehension. "As to the Progress and Effect of these Successes, we must 
suspend our Accounts 'til further Ncws^ — the losing Lord Howe is paying too dear for 
the advantages we have yet gain'd for nothing can compensate for so dear a Sacrifice, 
but the Total Reduction of Canada." — Boston Gazette, July 17, 1758. 

On his loss, both provincial and regular officers blamed the disasters which followed. 
With him, declared Thomas Mante, "the soul of General Abercromby's army seemed 
to expire. From the unhappy moment the general was deprived of his advice, neither 
order nor discipline was observed, and a strange kind of infatuation usurped the place 
of resolution." — Parkman, Montcalm and U'oljc, II, 97. 



lysS] THE TICONDEROGA CAMPAIGN 21 

of gear. "All in confusion," wrote Ward. Howe was dead, 
and Abercromby lost touch with his command. He collected 
"such parts of it" as were within his reach "and posted them 
under the trees, where they remained all night under arms."^^ 
The others, Williams' regiment among them, made their way 
out of the forest as best they could and "returned to ye place 
we landed at with 160 prisoners and incamped."^^ 

The next morning (July 7), still ignorant of the where- 
abouts of a large part of his force, Abercromby also re- 
turned to the landing place, there to find it awaiting him.^^ 

His army reunited, the English commander-in-chief took 
up his plans anew. First to set out was Lieutenant-Colonel 
Bradstreet with a detachment of redcoats and provincials — 
Williams' regiment among them. They "marched and took 
possession of ye mills" — the sawmill at the Falls, an ad- 
vanced French post which Montcalm had held in strong force 
until the preceding day. Thence, the Williams, Preble, and 
Doty regiments, and Partridge's battalion, went forward to 

" Abercromby's Report to William Pitt, Secretary of State, July 12, 175S, Public 
Record Office, London, C. O. 5, Volume 50, page 353 (page 259 in British Transcripts in 
Library of Congress). 

^^ Ward's Diary. 

" Parkman, Montcalm and JFolfe, II, 98, says "the effect of the loss [of Howe] was 
seen at once. The army was needlessly kept under arms all night in the forest, and in 
the morning was ordered back to the landing place whence it came." The same state- 
ments appear in the accounts by Bancroft and others. The impression thus conveyed is 
inaccurate. The conditions were considerably worse. Instead of merely an army "need- 
lessly kept under arms all night," it was, as noted above, a disjointed army largely out 
of touch with its commander-in-chief. A number of regiments were "missing" and 
Abercromby's aides did not know where to look for them. 

Contemporary accounts tell the story. Ward's diary entry I have quoted above. 
See also: the diary of Lemuel Lyon, of Fitch's Connecticut regiment {The Military 
Journals of Tivo Private Soldiers, 22), July 6 — "at Sondown . . . our men came 
back again to the Landing place and Lodged their" ; Colonel Partridge's letter, July 
12 {Israel TFilUams Papers, II, 77, Massachusetts Historical Society) — "The Regt. 
got so dispersed we were obliged to retire to open ground to Form anew where we 
camped" ; and the continuation of Abercromby's report — "The 7th, In the Morning, 
having yet no Intelligence of the Troops that were missing, (being several Regiments,) 
not knowing which Way they had gone; Our Intelligence uncertain. Our Guides ignorant, 
& the Troops with me greatly fatigued, by having been one whole Night on the Water, 
the following Day constantly on Foot, and the next Night under Arms, added to their 
being in Want of Provision, having dropped what they had brought with them. In Order 
to lighten themselves, It was thought most Advlseable to return to the Landing Place, 
which we accordingly did, anil upon Our Arrival there, about 8 that Morning, found the 
Remainder of the Army." 



22 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 30 

"within ^ mile of ye french" and there built a breastwork 
and encamped. 

Bradstreet also "rebuilt the bridges destroyed by the 
retiring enemy, and sent word to his commander that the 
way was open; on which Abercromby again put his army in 
motion [and] reached the Falls late in the afternoon." ^^ 

Montcalm resolves to hold Ticonderoga despite the dan- 
gers of the position and his lesser numbers, and to make 
his stand upon the ridge immediately to the west of his 
stronghold. The decision reached, his Frenchmen ply their 
axes with furious energy, felling trees by scores, by hundreds, 
by thousands. 

The fort stood at the point of a tongue of land — a rocky 
plateau, with low ground on both sides — washed on the east 
by the head of Lake Champlain and on the west by the out- 
let of Lake George. Its new defenses so hurriedly being 
prepared stretch across the tongue from water to water. 
The ridge chosen for the main defense crowns the plateau 
at a distance of about half a mile from the fort, and upon 
it swiftly rises a mighty log breastwork zigzagging along its 
entire length. In front of this is set a barrier of heavy boughs 
interwoven with sharp points bristling everywhere. Again 
in front, on the descending slope — as also on the low ground 
to the sides — lie the trees as they fall, crowding each other 
in a thicket of underbrush: acres of trunks presenting a 
myriad obstructions : a vast abattis — a position of a thousand 
man-traps, and every trap a target for the Frenchmen posted 
behind the zigzag breastwork. 

On the next day (July 8) Abercromby, misled by his own 
incompetence and an engineer's faulty report, ordered the 
taking of the position at the point of the bayonet. Any one 
of several other methods would have spelled the certain de- 
feat or capitulation of the French — with, probably, slight 
English losses. But Abercromby and his officers, possessed 

" Pirkman. Montcalm and Wglfe, II. 98. 



lysS] THE TICONDEROGA CAMPAIGN 23 

by the devils of unreasoned recklessness and gross Ill-judg- 
ment, must hurl their men at the French breastwork in a 
frontal assault. Hurry, hurry — reinforcements are coming 
to Montcalm! No time to bring up the cannon! Charge 
with the bayonet! 

In the van, driving in the French outposts as the army 
moves forward through the forest, are Rogers' rangers, 
"Bradstreet's armed boatmen," and a detachment of regulars 
(Gage's Light Infantry). 

Next come several thousand provincials, halting just with- 
in the concealment of the trees and underbrush^® and taking 
up positions at intervals, extending thus across the tongue 
from shore to shore — Williams' regiment to the right of the 
center. 

Then — the main body of the English regulars. Forming 
in "columns of attack" they pass between the provincial 
regiments, march briskly out of the obscurity of the forest, 
and push forward to the attack. 

"Across the rough ground, with Its maze of fallen trees 
whose leaves hung withering In the July sun," the Englishmen 
"could see the top of the breastwork, but not the men behind 
it; when, in an instant, all the line was obscured by a gush of 
smoke, a crash of exploding firearms tore the air, and grape- 
shot and musket-balls swept the whole space like a tempest; 
*a damnable fire,' says an oflicer who heard them screaming 
about his ears. The English had been ordered to carry the 
works with the bayonet; but their ranks were broken by the 
obstructions through which they struggled in vain to force 
their way, and they soon began to fire In turn. The storm 
raged in full fury for an hour. The assailants pushed close 
to the breastwork; but there they were stopped by the bristling 
mass of sharpened branches, which they could not pass under 
the murderous cross-fires that swept them from front and 

^'Colonel Partridge to his wife, July i2, 1758, Israel Wtlllams Papers, II, yy, 
Massachusetts Historical Society. 



24 ARTEMAS WARD [Age 30 

flank. At length they fell back, exclaiming that the works 
were impregnable."^^ 

Abercromby sent orders to attack again — and again they 
set themselves to the task. 

"The scene was frightful: masses of infuriated men who 
could not go forward and would not go back; straining for 
an enemy they could not reach, and firing on an enemy they 
could not see; caught in the entanglement of fallen trees; 
tripped by briers, stumbling over logs, tearing through 
boughs; shouting, yelling, cursing, and pelted all the while 
with bullets that killed them by scores, stretched them on the 
ground, or hung them on jagged branches in strange attitudes 
of death." 18 

The provincial troops poured from their concealment in 
the forest and crowded forward to the aid of the redcoats — 
but without avail, for the flank fires of musketry and grape 
beat down every approach. 

Several times the English attacked with the most desperate 
courage, but their oflicers had set them an impossible task. 
The last assault was made at about six o'clock: it was as 
fruitless as those which had preceded it. 

"From this time till half-past seven a lingering fight was 
kept up by the rangers and other provincials, firing from the 
edge of the woods and from behind the stumps, bushes, and 
fallen trees in front of the lines. Its only objects were to 
cover their comrades, who were collecting and bringing off 
the wounded, and to protect the retreat of the regulars, who 
fell back in disorder to the Falls. As twilight came on the 
last combatant withdrew, and none were left but the dead. 
Abercromby had lost in killed, wounded, and missing nineteen 
hundred and forty-four officers and men."^^ 

The regulars had suffered the most severely — their dead 
and wounded reached a full fourth of their entire strength; 

" Parkman, Montcalm and Wolfe, II, 105—106. 
^^Ibld., 106. 
^mid., no. 



iys8] THE TICONDEROGA CAMPAIGN 25 

but the provincial casualties were also considerable, nearly 
equaling the total of the French losses. 

Captain Charles Lee was one of the many English officers 
wounded — a musket-ball passing through his body and break- 
ing two of his ribs. 

A start had been made to build breastworks to check the 
enemy if he should follow up his victory, but Ward's diary 
tells us that the work was soon abandoned and that the 
army "shamefully retreated." 

Williams' regiment fell back only a short distance, how- 
ever, halting and encamping, together with Partridge's bat- 
talion, at their "old Breastwork" between the French lines 
and the mill. 

The English were still strong in numbers and well able to 
hold their own even if Montcalm should receive his expected 
reinforcements, but Abercromby had been completely un- 
nerved by the losses he had sustained. His rashness "before 
the fight, was matched by his poltroonery after it."^*' At 
about midnight Colonel Williams and Colonel Partridge acci- 
dentally discovered "to our great surprise" that the army was 
in full flight southward to its boats, and they perforce again 
set out to follow it.^^ 

The troops "arrived at ye battoos" in the morning and 
went on board — then south the length of Lake George, re- 
turning humbled, disgusted, and defeated to the encamp- 
ment which they had left a few days earlier full of confidence 
and national pride. 

The New England provincials thenceforth referred to 
Abercromby as "Mrs. Nabbycrombie" ("Nabby" being the 
familiar of Abigail) . And Charles Lee's sharp tongue speaks 
of him as "our Booby in Chief." 

For another three months the southern extremity of Lake 
George served as the main basis of the army. A camp of ill- 

^" Parkman, Montcalm and Wolfe, II, 114. 

"Colonel Partridge to his wife, July 12, 1758, Israel Williams Papers, II, yy, 
Massachusetts Historical Society. 



26 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 30-32 

fortune, its depleted ranks stricken by fever and dysentery. 
Sanitary conditions were bad, the food often unwholesome, 
and hospital supplies frequently lacking. ^^ On September 
24 Ward recorded, "This day according to ye returns given 
in, there are but 1657 R. F. [rank and file] of the Provincials 
fit for duty." 

There were, however, occasional bright spots in those 
dreary months. The camp drew great satisfaction from the 
victory of Rogers' detachment in a hot skirmish with Marin. 
Ward wrote, "ye truth is they gave ye Enemy a good drubing 
this time!" 

Again, on August 20, glorious news came to headquarters 
by a letter from Lieutenant-Governor Hutchinson of "ye, 
surrender of Cape Breton that it surrendered ye 26th of July 
last"; and, later, word of the capture and destruction of Fort 
Frontenac by Bradstreet and 3000 men, nearly all of them 
provincials of the Ticonderoga army. 

Yet more weeks passed, then "Amherst, with five regi- 
ments, from Louisbourg, came ... to join Abercromby at 
Lake George, and the two commanders discussed the ques- 
tion of again attacking Ticonderoga. Both thought the sea- 
son too late. A fortnight after, a deserter brought news that 
Montcalm was breaking up his camp."^^ 

Abercromby followed his example. The regulars were 
withdrawn and the specially raised provincial regiments were 
marched homeward and disbanded: Williams' regiment, to- 
gether with Preble's and Nichols', setting out on October 24. 

The campaign had ended, and during the following winter 
"only a few scouting parties kept alive the embers of war on 
the waters and mountains of Lake George." 

On his return, Ward made a brief stay in Shrewsbury and 

^" "Our sick, destitute of everything proper for them ; an empty medicine-chest ; noth- 
ing but their dirty blankets for bed and bedding in malignant and slow fevers; Dr. 
Ashley dead, Dr. Wright gone home low eno', Bille worn off of his legs. Such is 
our case. ... I have near loo sick." — Colonel Williams, Sept. 4, 1758, Israel IFil- 
liams Papers, II, 84, Massachusetts Historical Society. 

^ Parkman, Montcalm and Wolfe, II, 129-130. 



775^-/7^0] HIS HEALTH IMPAIRED 27 

then proceeded to Boston for the discharge of his bounty and 
billeting-money bonds. 

This conckided a campaign of such dangers and difficulties 
as test not only a man's physical courage, but also his moral 
fortitude in the face of disease and disorder, and his patience 
and constancy when suffering from delays bred both by 111 
circumstances and by the incompetence of military and civilian 
superiors. 

Quick recognition of the excellence of Ward's record dur- 
ing that trying year is seen in another upward step In military 
title. In the field he had earned promotion from major to 
lieutenant-colonel. Within two months of his return he 
was commissioned as colonel — his command being the Third 
Middlesex and Worcester County Regiment, In which he had 
formerly served as captain and major. 

The TIconderoga expedition had proved little short of an 
utter failure, but England's honor had been retrieved by 
Amherst and Wolfe at Loulsburg; and 1759 — the year in 
which both Montcalm and Wolfe gave their lives for their 
countries — tendered rich promise that thereafter England 
was to be overlord in North America. 

These successes must be permanently secured. And 1760 
again saw preparation for the "complete reduction of Canada." 

The TIconderoga campaign had seriously Impaired Ward's 
health, and during 1759 he had made no effort to return to 
service in the field; but he was ready for the call in 1760, 
was commissioned colonel of a provincial expeditionary regi- 
ment, and was active In enlisting men to fill Its ranks. 

His constitution had, however, been more seriously un- 
dermined than he had supposed, and he was compelled to re- 
linquish the expeditionary command and to content himself 
with that of his standing militia regiment and the Inspection 
of expeditionary enlistments in the post of Commissary of 
Musters. He Indeed never regained robust health, and cal- 
culus, his arch-enemy henceforth, plagued him Intermittently 
all his life. 



28 ARTEMAS WARD [^^e 32-35 

In civil affairs he steadily gained stature both in county and 
township. In the latter he had become the accepted leader 
of the community. 

To his township offices were added those of town mod- 
erator (in 1761, and somewhat later for a series of terms) ; 
church moderator, in 1760, 1761, and 1762, following the 
death of the Reverend Job Gushing, his old tutor, and until 
arrangements were completed for the settlement of the Rev- 
erend Joseph Sumner; and treasurer — commencing with 
1760, and thereafter every year except one until the Revolu- 
tionary War. 

As Representative he was reelected without intermission, 
save only the year of the Ticonderoga campaign and 1762 
(when no Representative was sent from Shrewsbury), until 
he entered the Council. 

And he was on January 21, 1762, appointed a judge of the 
Worcester County Court of Common Pleas i^^ and commis- 
sioned as a justice of the peace "of the quorum." 

In the House, Ward was known to his colleagues as an in- 
defatigable worker, and we find him, both at this period and 
in succeeding years, shouldering a great deal of committee 
work: considering all manner of applications and petitions; 
preparing currency and tax bills, etc. He also served by 
House authority as trustee for the Hassanamisco Indians. 

It was in 1763 (January 12), the year following his ap- 
pointment as judge of the Court of Common Pleas, that 
Colonel Ward purchased from his brother Elisha the house 
opposite the old Nahum Ward home which their father had 
erected early in the history of Shrewsbury. The sale included 
seventy acres of land fronting on the Great Country 
Road.25 

Into this house, a frame structure of seven rooms (the 

"* The chief justice was Brigadier-General Timothy Ruggles. 

^ Ward had, on December 28. 1762, sold his home, the Yellow House and farm 
(page ID, note), to the Reverend Joseph Sumner, the new minister. Mr. Sumner moved 
in on June 8, 1763. 



ij6o-i763'\ IS MADE A JUDGE 29 

"Old Part" of the present Artemas Ward House), he soon 
after moved his family (already a typical old-time Massa- 
chusetts family of six children), and under its roof he held 
court and dispensed law and order for more than a score of 
years. 



CHAPTER III 

February, iy6^-May, 1774: Age 35-46 

Massachusetts after 1763. The Stamp Act dispute arouses Colonel 
Ward. Governor Bernard cancels his commission. On many 
committees of political protest. Elected to the Council in a contest 
with Lieutenant-Governor Hutchinson. Rejected by Governor 
Bernard. One of the "Glorious Ninety-Two." Again elected to 
the Council and again vetoed. A third time elected — and at last 
grudgingly admitted to the Board. General Charles Lee arrives 
in New York. The "Tea Party" of 1773 and the Boston Port 
Act. 

WITH the signing of the Treaty of Paris, on February 
10, 1763, we enter a new era. English arms have 
driven the French flag from the North American continent. 
They have triumphed also In Asia. England has won the 
supremacy of the seas and has become the greatest of colonial 
powers. 

The English colonies In North America have Increased 
from the scant half million whites of Artemas Ward's birth- 
date, thirty-five years before, to a total of one and a half 
minion. And many thoughtful minds contemplatively regard 
the vast undeveloped Indian-peopled regions which the for- 
tune of war has passed from French to English dominion. 

The crushing of French sovereignty quickened the hun- 
dred converging causes which formed the river that within 
a few short years swept all before It In Its course to the wide 
seas of American Independence. 

The outcome might have been long delayed If It had been 
possible to make the men directing England's policy com- 
prehend that her North American colonies held In full the 

30 



1763-17 6 s\ THE STAMP ACT 31 

English tradition that the right of self-taxation is the funda- 
mental of liberty. 

In 1765 came the historic Stamp Act — both the levying 
and the expenditure to be under the control of the English 
Parliament. Every student is familiar with the storm that 
it raised during its short and impotent life. 

The whole subject of overseas authority was suddenly and 
violently illuminated. Here was a clear, clean issue, un- 
complicated by the generations of mercantile compromises 
and evasions which befogged the operation of the Naviga- 
tion and Trade acts. Here was an act, in no way related 
to the regulation of the commerce of the empire, designed to 
collect a tax specifically for revenue. The revenue was to be 
employed to assist in defraying "the necessary expenses of 
defending, protecting, and securing" the colonies; but this 
provision did not soften the American attitude toward the 
two questions: Had Parliament the right to levy the tax? 
Shall it be paid? The answer to both questions was an em- 
phatic negative. 

In Massachusetts, the Stamp Act aroused thousands who 
had taken only a fitful interest in the Sugar and Molasses 
disputes, and had not been enduringly stirred even by the 
"Writs of Assistance." It blew to a white heat the flame relit 
in the brilliant erratic mind of James Otis,^ at this date still 
bearing the title of the "great incendiary" of the patriot 
party. It initiated the political activity of several men who 
figured prominently in the struggle for independence. 

Artemas Ward was among those inspired. He had been 
little affected by the disturbances bred by the Navigation and 
Trade acts, and had taken no part in either provincial or 
local quarrels with holders or supporters of the preroga- 
tive — but the Stamp Act struck fire in him; his activity in 
patriot circles commences with its date. 

^ My reference, except where otherwise noted, is always to James Otis, the son, 
of Boston, immortalized by his speech against Writs of Assistance; not to James Otis, 
the father, of Barnstable. 



32 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 37 

This new strong sentiment rapidly widened the breach 
separating the two parties which in their later development 
are best recognized by modern students under the titles of 
"Loyalist" and "Patriot." 

In Boston, the loyalists formed a superstructure of wealth 
and large social importance, centering chiefly around the An- 
glican church. Within their lines were the governor and his 
friends and appointees, the higher justices and numerous 
lawyers, and a fair proportion of the merchants of the town, 
together with a coterie whose concerns were not materially 
affected by either party but who gravitated to the loyalist 
side by the weight of inherited reverence for English institu- 
tions — or at the less admirable behest of social ambitions and 
aspirations. 

Less socially brilliant, but very formidable, was the patriot 
party. It included many merchants and professional men, 
most of the clergy excepting those of the Anglican church, 
and almost the entire body of mechanics. The strongest 
figure in its councils was Samuel Adams — "master of the town- 
meeting" and ever ready of tongue and pen. 

The Boston of Samuel Adams and his clan constituted 
the head and mouth of the radical patriots, but their weight 
and strength lay in the country townships. It was fear of 
the manhood of the country townships which held the loyal- 
ist officials and partisans in check during the years of wrang- 
ling which preceded the outbreak of the Revolution. With- 
out the menace of the rallying of thousands of armed 
farmers, the Boston patriot leaders would have enjoyed 
short shrift. This menace outweighed even the guns of the 
English navy and the bayonets of the regulars. 

Unanimity was, nevertheless, rare even in the country dis- 
tricts. Nearly every township held its exceptions. 

The General Court opened its fall session on September 
25 — just thirty days after the sacking of the mansion of 
Lieutenant-Governor Hutchinson by a Stamp Act mob. Dur- 
ing its very brief duration, Samuel Adams entered it as a 



iy6s] PROMINENT AS A "PATRIOT" 33 

newly enrolled Representative — his first direct participation 
in the government of the province. 

Governor Bernard addressed the delegates on the riots 
and the necessity of submission to the provisions of the 
Stamp Act. He painted in strong sentences the dangers of 
refusal to abide by them — the loss of trade by the cessation 
of navigation, and a general state of outlawry; and argued 
for the compensation of those who had suffered in the riots. 

Colonel Ward's stand against imperial taxation had been 
quickly recognized, and on the following day he was added to 
the committee which was preparing an answer to the gov- 
ernor's message. This was Ward's first appointment on a 
committee of political protest. 

During the same afternoon came an appointment on an- 
other committee to deliver the Representatives' reply to the 
governor's notification that a stamp ship had entered the 
harbor and his request for assistance in the care and preser- 
vation of the Stamped Papers that it brought. 

The Representatives' reply expressed their entire unwiUing- 
ness to have anything whatever to do with the Stamped 
Papers. 

Bernard's retaliation was an excuse-coated order adjourn- 
ing the General Court to October. 

Shortly after the adjournment came the Stamp Act con- 
gress in New York. Its labors resulted in addresses to the 
King and the two houses of Parliament. Timothy Ruggles, 
chief justice of the Court of Common Pleas of Worcester 
County (on whose bench Ward had now sat for three years), 
served as president of the congress — but the stand he took 
was strongly prerogative and he refused to sign the addresses 
adopted. 

The General Court met again on October 23, and on the 
following day a House committee which included Samuel 
Adams and Colonel Ward presented the reply to Bernard 
which had been held up by the sudden adjournment of the 
preceding month. The reply respectfully acknowledged the 



34 ARTEMAS WARD [J^e 37-38 

authority of the English Parliament, though emphasizing its 
limitations, but its tone toward the governor was of sarcasm 
and dislike. With this committee appointment began Ward's 
close political association with Samuel Adams — a bond which 
held for a quarter of a century. 

Five days later the House drew up resolves of the "just 
rights" of the inhabitants of the province — disavowing taxa- 
tion by Parliament, and declaring that "all acts made, by 
any Power whatever, other than the General Assembly of 
this province, imposing Taxes on the Inhabitants are In- 
fringements of our inherent and unalienable Rights." 

On November 7, Ward was placed on the committee to 
draft a letter on the Stamp Act and restrictions of American 
trade, to be sent to Massachusetts' English Agent. 

The session terminated on the next day. 

The winter following saw a flourishing crop of the non- 
importation resolutions so distasteful to English pocket- 
books, an unrelenting opposition to the use of the reviled 
stamps, and a great making of homespun to take the place 
of imported clothes. 

The spring records the repeal of the Stamp Act amid re- 
joicing on both sides of the Atlantic. American patriot 
leaders looked askance, however, at the accompanying De- 
claratory Act, which emphatically asserted the "full power 
and authority" of the King and Parliament "to make laws 
and statutes ... to bind the colonies and people of Amer- 
ica .. . in all cases whatsoever." 

And, further, in Boston, there was little peace within legis- 
lative walls, for Bernard made the first session of the new 
General Court lively by quarreling with the Representatives 
for failing to elect Hutchinson, the Olivers, and Trowbridge 
to the Council (which omission he had countered by negativ- 
ing six of the councilors returned). He also made very em- 
phatic his demand for the compensation of Hutchinson and 
others who had suffered property losses during the Stamp Act 
riots. 



1765-1766^^ PROMINENT AS A "PATRIOT" 35 

The Representatives retorted with objections to his tem- 
per, expressions, and methods. 

Ward was a member of the committee appointed, June 
27, to reply to Bernard's second message concerning com- 
pensation. Its answer, delivered on the following day, 
stated that the House felt that It had done all "that our Most 
Gracious Sovereign and his Parliament" could "reasonably 
expect from" It, but that It had appointed a committee to 
Investigate during the summer recess and would act on Its 
report during the next session. It concluded by saying : "Your 
Excellency Is pleased to enforce the Immediate compliance of 
the House with this requisition, by an argument drawn from a 
regard to the town of Boston, the reputation of whose In- 
habitants your Excellency says has already suffered much for 
having been tame spectators of the violences committed, and 
that this disgrace would be removed thereby. We see no 
reason why the reputation of that town should suffer in the 
opinion of any one, from all the evidence which has fallen 
under the observation of the House. Nor does it appear to 
us how a compliance would remove such disgrace. If that town 
had been so unhappy as to have fallen under It." 

The same afternoon the House was adjourned without any 
untoward event. 

The trend of Ward's political sentiments had not been 
overlooked by the prerogative party, and Bernard reached 
the conclusion that he was a dangerous man to hold a 
colonel's command. His removal quickly followed: his com- 
mission was canceled within two days of the closing of the 
spring session. 

The delivery, on July 7, of the governor's order of re- 
moval formed a dramatic little scene which was long treas- 
ured In Shrewsbury. The most circumstantial account 
handed down to posterity Is that of the Reverend Joseph 
Sumner,^ for sixty-two years the township's much beloved and 
Influential preacher. 

* A. H. Ward, History of the Town of Shre'zvsbury, Mass., 492. 



ZS ARTEMAS WARD {Age 38-3Q 

Bernard's message was carried by a mounted officer in 
full uniform. He found Ward on the common among 
a number of the townspeople who had come together to 
tear down the old meeting-house. He delivered his dispatch 
and then, still seated on his horse, appeared to await a reply. 
Ward read the letter^ — a short one and to the point, as 
follows : 

"Boston, June 30, 1766. 
To Artemas Ward, Esq., Sir: 

I am ordered by the Governor to signify to you, that he 
has thought fit to supersede your commission of Col. in the 
Regt. of Militia lying in part in the County of Worcester, 
and partly in the County of Middlesex. And your said com- 
mission is superseded accordingly. 

I am, sir, your most obt. and humble servt., 

John Cotton, Dep'y Sec'y." 

As Ward finished reading, one of the onlookers asked if 
the message contained "important news." Whereupon Ward 
read the letter aloud, and then, turning to the messenger, said, 
"Give my compliments to the Governor, and say to him, I 
consider myself twice honored, but more in being superseded, 
than in having been commissioned, and that I thank him for 
this," holding up the letter, "since the motive that dictated 
it is evidence, that I am, what he is not, a friend to my 
country." 

The story goes steadily forward during the fall and win- 
ter sessions. Ward (December 5) voted "Yea" (with 
Samuel Adams, Otis, Hancock, the Whitcombs, Foster, and 
other well-known patriots) on the bill which granted com- 
pensation to the Stamp Act Riot victims but joined with it a 
"general Pardon, Indemnity and Oblivion to the Offenders." 

Bernard hesitated to accept this, but finally decided to 
make the best of it. 

On January 29, 1767, Ward was with Samuel Adams, 



1766-1767^ THE GROWTH OF RESISTANCE 37 

Otis, Gushing, and Hawley on a committee to report a reply 
to Bernard's opening address of the preceding day; and two 
days later on a new committee to present the answer pre- 
pared — which referred somewhat sarcastically to the spirit 
of the address and objected to the uninvited presence of 
Hutchinson in the Council Chamber during the attendance 
of the General Court on the governor. 

February 3, he was with Samuel Adams, Otis, Cushing, 
Hawley, Dexter, and Sheaffe on a committee to consider the 
governor's acknowledgment that, through the Council, 
money had been expended for the maintenance of an artillery 
company which had arrived in the fall. 

The reply drawn up by the committee was a strong rebuke 
to the governor for having taken money from the treasury 
without the knowledge of the House. 

Also on February 3, Ward was with Brigadier-General 
Preble and others on a committee to Inquire into the state of 
the militia. 

In June the English Parliament passed the Townshend 
"Act for granting certain Duties in the British Colonies and 
Plantations in America, etc." It levied on importations of 
glass, red lead, white lead, painters' colors, paper (and paste- 
board, etc.), and tea; and legalized Writs of Assistance. 
The anticipated revenue was to be applied first to the pay- 
ment of the colonial civil list. 

The expressed intent of the Townshend Act to collect a 
revenue, set it, like the Stamp Act, outside the theory of the 
earlier Navigation and Trade acts, but as "external" taxation 
it was hoped that it would be swallowed. A few years earlier 
it might have gone down without much trouble, but patriot 
political analysis had progressed and now would not brook 
any taxes, external or Internal, levied for revenue. 

Historians note, with varying sentiments, the development 
and expansion of Massachusetts' views of her relations with 
England, and of her progressive objections to forms of taxa- 
tion. But this evolution of claim and assertion, as she 



38 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 39-40 

struggled to prevent colonial autonomy from being sub- 
merged by new extensions of imperial control, should not sur- 
prise the student. Both colonial and English leaders were 
sailing on seas Imperfectly charted. England herself had not 
then formulated a clear theory of the constitution of the 
British Empire. 

The personal side also made itself strongly felt. Massa- 
chusetts leaders held themselves fully the equals of English 
statesmen, and had no inclination to bend the knee to them. 

The England of George III was feared and respected, but 
with few exceptions its politics and politicians were, by mod- 
ern standards, both incompetent and venal. Parliamentary 
representation, church livings, army and navy commissions, 
and government appointments were publicly bought, sold, 
and bartered: were publicly advertised for sale. All branches 
of the government were saturated with corruption. 

General conditions were equally bad. Greater wealth than 
the nation had ever before known had followed the stretch- 
ing of the empire and the tapping of India, but its possession 
jostled a great deal of bitter poverty; highwaymen were an 
expected episode on even the most frequented roads; gross 
ImmoraUty was rife; rioting was common. 

It Is not surprising that the leaders of thought In the 
cleaner, more orderly atmosphere of the colonies — especially 
the Massachusetts leaders — resisted firmly, and sometimes 
most acrimoniously, every attempt to bring, or which seemed 
to threaten to bring them under the thumbs of English office- 
holders. 

By natural gifts and inclination, and by the experience of 
well-tried generations, the people of Massachusetts were 
fully qualified to govern themselves without any imperial aid, 
superintendence, or advice. Despite their place upon the 
calendar of the eighteenth century, instead of the nineteenth 
or twentieth, they were as competent and full-fledged as are 
the self-governing, or "responsible government," colonies of 
the British Empire of today. 



i767-i768'\ THE GROWTH OF RESISTANCE 39 

In practice, though not in formal recognition, they had In- 
deed traveled a long way toward the status of a self-govern- 
ing colony, and men of the Samuel Adams type desperately 
fought every attempt to make them retrace their steps — even 
If only a short distance and for good Imperial reasons. 

In the following January (1768) the Massachusetts 
House met the Townshend revenue act with a petition to the 
King and addresses to members of the English ministry, re- 
monstrating against taxation levied by Parliament, and It suc- 
ceeded this on February 11 with Samuel Adams' "Circular 
Letter" to the other colonies. Informing them of Its action 
and suggesting that "all possible care" be taken that the 
provinces "upon so delicate a point should harmonize with 
each other." 

Next one comes to May 25, blographlcally Important as 
the date of Ward's election to the Council In a contest with 
Lieutenant-Governor Hutchinson. 

The Council at this period, It should be remembered, held 
a large measure of power, for it shared both in legislation 
and In executive authority, combining the duties now resting 
separately on the Senate and Council. 

Eighteen councilors were to be chosen from within the 
old Massachusetts Bay Colony. Seventy-one votes were re- 
quired for election. The first ballot disclosed only seventeen 
men who had received the requisite number. Hutchin- 
son had been given sixty-eight — the highest number of 
those who failed of election. The prerogative party ex- 
pected to seat him on the next ballot, but Samuel Adams 
spread the news, freshly arrived, that Hutchinson had re- 
ceived a grant from the crown — that he had become a gov- 
ernment "Pensioner," and Otis hurried from member to mem- 
ber crying for votes for Colonel Ward. The result of their 
efforts was the Immediate election of Ward to complete the 
Council roll. 

Bernard promptly retaliated by vetoing Ward. 



40 ARTEMAS WARD \_Age 40 

In his letter to ex-Governor Pownall,^ one of several on the 
subject, Hutchinson describes Ward as "a very sulky fellow, 
who I thought I could bring over by giving him a commission 
in the provincial forces after you left the government, but 

I was mistaken." 

Telling of Bernard's veto, he adds, "Ward was sacrificed 
to my manes!" 

A month later (June 21) Bernard presented the instruc- 
tions of Lord Hillsborough, England's Colonial Secretary, 
that he "require of the House of Representatives, in his 
Majesty's Name, to Rescind the Resolution which gave Birth 
to the Circular Letter from the Speaker [that of February 

I I to the other colonies referred to on page 39] and to 
declare their Disapprobation of, and Dissent to that rash 
and hasty proceeding." 

The House came to a vote on the subject June 30. By 
ninety-two to seventeen it refused to rescind, and was 
promptly dissolved. 

The Representatives who thus defied England were ex- 
tolled throughout the length and breadth of the colonies, and 
in and out of print, as the "Glorious Ninety-Two." Promi- 
nent among them was Artemas Ward. The seventeen mem- 
bers who voted to rescind were led by Timothy Ruggles. 

Ofl'icial voices were now reiterating demands for troops to 
hold the people in check. A little later, the report that troops 
were coming resulted in a Boston town-meeting which re- 
solved against taxation except by their own Representatives, 
and against a standing army; voted that all inhabitants, not 
already provided, should furnish themselves with arms, "as 
provided by a good & wholesome law of the Province" — giv- 
ing as excuse the possibility of another English-French war; 
and invited a general convention of town committees. 

Ward was on September 20 unanimously chosen Shrews- 
bury's representative in the "Committee of Convention" — 

"MS. copy, June 7, 1768, Massachusetts Archives, XXV, 262. 



1768] THE GROWTH OF RESISTANCE 41 

the title applied to the gathering of town delegates thus 
called to the capital. 

The convention held its opening session on September 22, 
sixty-six towns and several districts being represented in the 
"upwards of seventy" delegates present. Later arrivals 
swelled their number until ninety-six towns and eight districts 
were represented. 

The delegates' first step was to petition the governor to 
cause an assembly "to be immediately convened." Bernard 
refused to receive the petition, denounced the calling of "an 
assembly of the people by private persons" as a "notorious 
violation" of the King's authority — "for a meeting of the 
Deputies of the Towns is an Assembly of the Representatives 
of the People to all Intents and Purposes; and it is not the 
calling it a Committee of Convention that will alter the 
Nature of the Thing," and admonished the delegates "In- 
stantly" to break up the assembly, or he should be obliged to 
"assert the Prerogative of the Crown In a more public Man- 
ner." "The King," he concluded, "is determined to maintain 
his entire Sovereignty over this Province; and whoever shall 
persist in usurping any of the Rights of It, will repent of his 
Rashness." 

The delegates ignored the demand that they disperse, and 
on the third day replied to him lengthily and argumentatively. 
But this communication also Bernard refused to receive. 

The convention concluded its proceedings on September 
26 with a public statement, "unanimously agreed upon," 
which Is lavish In expressions of loyalty but which repeated 
the protest of the dissolved House of Representatives against 
taxation for revenue and against a standing army being 
maintained in the province."* 

A squadron from Halifax arrived on the last day of the 
convention, bringing a detachment of regulars under the 
command of Lieutenant-Colonel Dalrymple. From their 

* A full account of the proceedings Is in the Boston newspapers of the time. 



42 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 40-41 

presence and those from Ireland, arriving soon after, sprang 
a new and very thorny crop of disputes — over their quarters 
and their supplies, the legality of their presence, etc. — a 
wordy warfare with many threats exchanged by "lobster 
backs" and "Sons of Liberty." 

Officials and their supporters of the prerogative party 
rejoiced, for they felt that they had achieved the upper hand. 
The troops garrisoned the capital, ready to uphold them, 
despite all the patriot protests. But this temporary success 
served, nevertheless, chiefly to mark the consummation of 
another grave error of judgment. The use of soldiery to 
suggest coercion was another defiance of the traditional sen- 
timents of the race. 

On through the winter, enlivened in England (now that 
Boston was possessed by the regulars) with Parliamentary 
plans to seize the patriot leaders for trial in England. These 
plans, and variations of them, were duly reported in the col- 
onies, and with the inflammatory result that might have been 
expected. 

Next spring (1769) came the publication of SDme of the 
letters Bernard had written to England during the preceding 
year. He had handled American conditions in an uncom- 
monly adverse spirit and had suggested various changes in 
the provincial government. 

The letters excited a great deal of anger throughout the 
province — somewhat to the perturbation of Lieutenant-Gov- 
ernor Hutchinson, for he also had been writing in similar 
strain. Exposure was, however, in his case deferred for sev- 
eral years. 

When the General Court convened on May 31, the House 
addressed the governor requesting the removal of the fleet 
and soldiers. He retorted that he had no authority over either. 

On the same day Ward was again elected to the Council, 
only to be vetoed on the morrow. 

The House, after much consideration and several reports 
(Ward was added to the second committee of considera- 



1768-17691 THE GROWTH OF RESISTANCE 43 

tion), drew up a strong paper disputing Bernard's plea of 
impotence, and expressing the alarm of the province, if he 
were correct, at the presence of an army "uncontrollable by 
any civil authority in the province." Further, it objected to 
the idea that the regulars were needed, declaring that dis- 
turbances in Massachusetts had been "greatly misrepre- 
sented" ; that they were not nearly so bad as many in Great 
Britain "at the very gates of the palace and even in the 
Royal Presence." 

Bernard replied that he could not remove the troops, but 
could the General Court — and did so, to Cambridge. 

On June 22 Ward was on the committee appointed to 
present to the Council the House approval of the "zeal and 
attention" the preceding Council had displayed in writing to 
Colonial Secretary Hillsborough to refute the statements in 
the Bernard (and Gage) letters. The Council's letter of 
April 15 had complained of the governor's representations, 
denying their accuracy; and charged him with planning "the 
Destruction of our Constitution." It had closed with the dec- 
laration that by the mutual lack of confidence his usefulness 
as governor had been destroyed. 

June 27, Ward took part in a vote unanimously approving 
a petition requesting Bernard's removal. 

On July 8 and 12 he was with Samuel Adams, Hancock, 
Otis the father and Otis the son, Hawley, and Colonel Wil- 
liams, on committees to answer the governor's messages of 
July 6 and 12. 

Their reply, unanimously approved by the House, was 
presented to Bernard on July 15. It refused to appropriate 
money to defray the expense of quartering the troops, and 
strongly protested against the governor and Council hav- 
ing authorized disbursements on that account. It concluded 
by asserting that "as we cannot, consistently with our honor, 
or interest, and much less with the duty we owe our con- 
stituents, so we shall never make provision for the purposes 
in your several messages above mentioned." 



44 ARTEMAS WARD [J^e 41-42 

Meantime, the renewal of the taxation controversy had 
again aroused the South, and also, in this year of 1769, 
brought George Washington into the arena as the introducer 
of the articles of association which gave birth to the Virginia 
non-importation agreement. 

The numerous violations of non-importation agreements 
only added to the heat of the conflict. The life of a merchant 
of the period held a greater possibility of exciting incident 
than is usually attendant on such a career. The ordinary 
equation of business uncertainty was liable to be varied at 
any moment by a customs agent with an omnipotent searching 
Writ of Assistance or by an equally aggressive patriot com- 
mittee set in full cry by a report, false or otherwise, of 
"prohibited" importations. 

In Boston the community was continually disturbed by 
many-sided quarrels engaging naval revenue officers,^ sol- 
diers, citizens, and seamen; the disputes occasionally swelling 
into violence, as in the assault on Otis and the shooting of 
the boy Snider, and culminating in the "Boston Massacre" 
on March 5, 1770. 

Acute indeed was the crisis following the "Massacre." 
Crowds of men, of Boston and all the neighboring towns, 
armed and protesting, filling the streets; other scores and 
hundreds continuously coming in from the country districts ; 
the local militia posted everywhere to avert any further clash 
with the soldiers — Samuel Adams and John Adams and Dr. 
Joseph Warren, as other prominent citizens, muskets in hand, 
taking their turns in policing the town both night and day. 

' The average layman reading that excise duties were collected by officers of the English 
navy, pictures the collectors as men of the style of those who now command His Majesty's 
ships — men of the same type as those in our own navy of today — but "The British naval 
lieutenant of 1765 was a very rough person. He had often been 'made' by a post- 
captain who in an emergency did a little press-gang work among merchantmen, and 
filled up the minor posts on the King's decks from the impressed mates and captains 
of the mercantile marine. Edward Thompson, in his letters, says that in liis time 'a 
chaw of tobacco, a rattan and a rope of oaths' constituted the simple qualifications for a 
lieutenancy in the King's fleet. Lieutenants according to this sample did very little to 
promote good feeling between Colonial traders and the British Navy." — Belcher's First 
American Civil War, I, 34-35. 



iT6g-i77o'\ THE GROWTH OF RESISTANCE 45 

The wrath of the people rose steadily higher, and a pitched 
battle with the soldiers was averted only by the governor and 
the English commander submitting to Samuel Adams' de- 
mand that the troops be removed from the town. 

The following month saw the repeal of the taxation provi- 
sions of the Townshend revenue act — excepting the duty on 
tea. Parliament might as well have let the act stand entire, 
for the exception was eventually to defeat the purpose of the 
repeal. 

The new General Court convened on May 30. It for the 
third time elected Ward to the Council, giving him 115 out 
of a total of 125 votes. Hutchinson, now acting-governor, 
had marked him and also Thomas Sanders for slaughter 
again, but took the advice of his associates and concluded to 
accept them; partly in gratitude for the election of several 
"very moderate men," and partly for fear that a new refusal 
would "increase the bad spirit in the House and through the 
province."^ 

Thus we find Colonel Ward at last a Councilor of Massa- 
chusetts. He takes his seat at the Board with twenty-four 
other councilors, all of them rather gorgeous in appearance 
because of their large white wigs and their scarlet-cloth coats 
— "some of them with gold-laced hats ... on the table 
before them, or under the table beneath them." Hutchinson 
is at the head of the table. 

Prominent on the walls are "glorious portraits of King 
Charles II and King James II, to which might be added and 
should be added, little miserable likenesses of Governor 
Winthrop, Governor Bradstreet, Governor Endicott, and 
Governor Belcher, hung up in obscure corners."''' 

Ward's class at Harvard is well represented, for he is 
joined at the Board by two of his classmates, both there also 
for the first time: Thomas Sanders of Gloucester — he who 
was all but vetoed together with Ward, and who had been 

* MS. copy, June 8, 1770, Massachusetts Archives, XXVI, 500. 
' TVorks of John Adams, X, 250, 249—250. 



46 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 42-45 

previously several times vetoed; and George Leonard, from 
Norton, one of the twenty-three members who had been will- 
ingly accepted. 

From this date until the time of the hated "mandamus 
councilors," Ward was each year reelected to the Board. 
He was, however, never persona grata to the governor's 
party because of his known antagonism to any encroachments 
on American rights. 

In the background, meantime, hung the strong sentiment 
that the Stamp Act had raised. The patriot element fluc- 
tuated in fervor, and non-importation resolutions broke down, 
but one did not have to go very deep to touch strong resist- 
ance. 

No new revenue laws were attempted, but other changes 
in control were essayed. All of them were perhaps 
justifiable from the English standpoint, but they looked dan- 
gerous to those Massachusetts leaders who had sniffed sus- 
piciously at the Declaratory Act and the exception to the 
Townshend Act repeal, and they kept the alarm-bells ringing. 

A brief spell of comparative political peace and then in the 
fall of 1772 Hutchinson (governor since March of the pre- 
ceding year) is startled by a new upheaval. It had been set 
mounting by the report that the judges of the Superior Court 
were to be carried on the King's payroll in place of their pay- 
ment by the provincial House of Representatives — thus de- 
priving the popular branch of the provincial government of its 
only means of exercising any control over the judiciary; and it 
brought into life the famous Committees of Correspondence. 

Hutchinson convened the General Court on January 6, 
1773, and in a lengthy speech set forth his views on the 
relative positions of the American colonies and the English 
Parliament, and deplored the recent town-meetings through- 
out the province in which the "supreme authority of Parlia- 
ment" had been denied. 

A long argument followed in which both House and Coun- 
cil took part. 



1770-17731 THE GROWTH OF RESISTANCE 47 

Ward was on the Council committee appointed to reply to 
Hutchinson. Its answer, presented January 25, declared that 
the unrest in the province rose from attempts of Parliament 
to subject the inhabitants to taxes without their consent; and 
it cited Magna Charta and other authorities in support of its 
declaration that Parliament could not constitutionally levy 
taxes "in any form," direct or indirect, on the people of 
Massachusetts. 

Ward was also on the committee which prepared the 
Council's answer to Hutchinson's reply. 

The Council's answer recapitulated its statements of Janu- 
ary 25, again referring to "Magna Charta, and other au- 
thorities" to prove that the province was not constitutionally 
subject to parliamentary taxation: "The argument, abridged, 
stands thus," it said, "that, from those authorities, it appears 
an essential part of the English constitution, that no tallage, 
or aid, or tax, shall be laid or levied, without the good will 
and assent of the freemen of the commonality of the realm. 
That, from common law, and the province charter, the in- 
habitants of this province are clearly entitled to all the rights 
of free and natural subjects, within the realm. That, among 
those rights, must be included the essential one just men- 
tioned, concerning aids and taxes; and therefore, that no aids 
or taxes can be levied on us, constitutionally, without our 
own consent, signified by our Representatives. From whence, 
the conclusion is clear, that therefore, the inhabitants of this 
province are not constitutionally subject to Parliamentary 
taxation." 

On March 5 Ward was on the Council committee which 
presented a message to Hutchinson protesting against the 
King's order, duly arrived, which made the judges of the 
Superior Court financially dependent on the crown. The 
Council declared that "as the Happiness of a Community 
so much depends on an impartial Administration of Justice" 
it could not "but be deeply affected by the thought, that 
by this Innovation in Government, a Foundation may be 



48 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 45 

laid for rendering the Rights, Liberties and Properties of 
this People, in Many Respects, precarious and insecure." 

Next to hand— of slight historical but large temporary 
Importance — is the publication of the letters written to 
Thomas Whately of London, ex-member of Parliament, by 
Governor Hutchinson (when Lieutenant-Governor), Lieu- 
tenant-Governor Andrew Oliver (when Secretary), and 
others, which had been sent back across the ocean by Ben- 
jamin Franklin. Much curiosity and apprehension had been 
aroused by various rumors disseminated concerning the let- 
ters, and when they finally appeared in print they were 
eagerly read by the entire province and denounced from a 
long list of pulpits.^ 

It happened that the letters were comparatively innocuous, 
but the Massachusetts ear was not so tuned as to enjoy the 
suggestions they contained that there "must be an abridge- 
ment of English liberties" and that something more than 
"declaratory acts or resolves" was needed to secure the de- 
pendence of the colony. If Franklin had obtained some of 
Hutchinson's other letters — those to Hillsborough and Ber- 
nard, for example — there would have been still greater heat 
in the province. 

Time has mellowed the criticisms of Hutchinson and we 
of today can generally visualize his viewpoint and appre- 
ciate both his abilities and the difficulties of his position. But 
the views he expressed and the advice he gave to English 
authorities were bitterly resented by his patriot contem- 
poraries. 

The new legislative year opened May 26. Ward did not 
reach Boston until June 15, but he was on the morrow ap- 

' The use of these letters is harshly condemned by loyalist writers and is deplored by 
many others, but there is no need to dodge or gloss over the issue. The alleged exag- 
geration of the import or design of the letters is a subject that may be debated, or 
criticized, or deplored (according to the individual viewpoint), but the procuring of 
them by Franklin and their forwarding to Boston does not call for apology. In those 
days no one held letters on political subjects as sacred, no matter by whom written or 
to whom addressed. Everyone in public life in England, from the King down, read 
and used other people's letters at every opportunity, both during their transit through 
the mails and after their delivery. 



ijjS'] THE GROWTH OF RESISTANCE 49 

pointed on the Council committee which notified Hutchinson 
that the House possessed several of his letters and requested 
him to inform them If he had written any "of the same Tenor 
with the copies herewith exhibited." 

Hutchinson asked to see the originals, and, after inspecting 
them, did not deny their authenticity. 

A few days later (June 25) the Board passed twelve re- 
solves condemning the Hutchinson and Oliver letters and a 
thirteenth requesting the removal of both the governor and 
lieutenant-governor. 

But such appeals were doomed to failure, for they could 
not stem the tide that In English official circles had set 
against patriot viewpoints, ambitions, and representations. 
English officialdom was confirmed In Its stand and fed in Its 
prejudices by the reports and opinions of sincere loyalists 
such as Hutchinson; by the insincere testimony of place-hunt- 
ers; and by the venom of mischief-makers. 

At this session Colonel Ward had the pleasure of sitting 
In the Council with John Winthrop, his Harvard Instructor 
in higher mathematics and natural philosophy. In the 
quarter-century that had elapsed since the day of Ward's 
graduation, Winthrop had achieved wide recognition as a 
scientist: Edinburgh had conferred an honorary LL.D. on 
him and the Royal Society of London had made him a Fellow. 

General Charles Lee arrived from England in the fall — 
the same Lee who as a captain of the Royal Grenadiers had 
fought at Ticonderoga. This is his first visit to America 
since the close of the French war; but for fame and dis- 
grace, for adulation and censure. It Is to be his home hence- 
forth. He is to play a heavy part In the Revolutionary 
drama. 

During the ten years which have passed since the signing 
of the Treaty of Paris, Lee has grown notably In experience 
and personality. He has won distinction In Portugal, and 
has held the rank of major-general in the Polish army. 



so ARTEMAS WARD [J^e 45 

English government and army circles know him well — but 
deny him favor, for his sharp tongue and ready pen have 
made him many enemies. 

A peculiar, brilliant man — driven by an abnormal excita- 
bility and restlessness which have swept him hither and 
thither, to and fro. Now forty-two years of age; of proved 
courage both in the field and the duello ; well versed in mili- 
tary subjects, judged by the standards of the time; and pos- 
sessed of a comfortable private fortune. A tall, thin man 
with a huge nose; slovenly in his dress; of erratic disposition 
and violent temper; intermittently ingratiating, caustic, and 
arrogant. 

Lee landed in New York on November 10. For a while 
the gout kept him inactive, but as soon as his malady had 
been alleviated he commenced the talking, writing, and visit- 
ing which so strongly fixed the attention of the colonies upon 
him. His aggressive espousal of the patriot cause inspired 
and inspirited all who came in contact with him; and his 
enthusiasm brought out and developed all that was best and 
most attractive in his complex character.^ 

Next one views Boston's defiance of the English attempt 
to make efficient use of the tea duty — that relic of the 
Townshend revenue act which had been smouldering now 
for several years, remaining on the statute books as a levy 
on all tea brought into the colonies, but actually reaching less 
than ten per cent, of the large quantity imported. The new 
plan was to employ the act for the assistance and profit of 
the English East India Company, the empire's greatest 
monopoly, and, incidentally, by the same stroke to make tea 
smuggling unprofitable and customs collections a source of 
appreciable revenue. 

* Many modern writers dismiss or disparage Charles Lee's military ability and reputa- 
tion as largely spurious, but to do so is to affront the judgment and experience of his 
most famous and most competent contemporaries. After months of close association 
at the siege of Boston, Washington was still a party to the universal American ad- 
miration of Lee's abilities (Washington's letter to Lee, March 14, 1776, Lee Papers, 
I, 358; to John A. Washington, March 31, 1776, Ford's Writings of George Washing- 
ton, in, 508). 



7775] THE DESTRUCTION OF THE TEA 51 

An interesting story is entwined in this English spinning of 
the fuse of the American Revolution. 

Its first and chief point is found in the exigencies of the 
great corporation licensed to exploit the millions of India but 
dangerously close to a bankruptcy that might involve imperial 
credit, for Its finances were interwoven with those of the Eng- 
lish government and its tentacles stretched through high 
English circles. Second, is an overstock of tea and other 
goods bulging Its warehouses. Third, is the possibility of 
unloading the tea on the American market by offering it at a 
low price direct to retailers through special agents — the Eng- 
lish government aiding by the removal of the English cus- 
toms, leaving only the American import duty. Fourth, is the 
political error of leaving the American duty payable in the 
colonies instead of making It payable in England. 

To Massachusetts the project came to ride upon the storm 
raised by the judges' salaries and the Hutchinson-Oliver let- 
ters. It revitalized the taxation controversy and excited the 
anger of the large patriot following which had declared 
against taxation for revenue. It alienated tory merchants — 
and backsliding whig merchants — who had laid In Dutch and 
other teas, smuggled or otherwise, and who saw their stocks 
about to drop in value. And it spread wide apprehension 
among merchants of all political persuasions lest their future 
trade — not only In tea, but also perhaps in other commodities 
— be engulfed by monopoly control. 

"The King meant to try the question with America" — and 
he got his answer quickly ! 

The story of the tea-dumping has been told too often to 
need recapitulation here, but let It not be forgotten that the 
moral effect on the King's representatives in Massachusetts 
was greatly enhanced by their knowledge that, in essentials, 
the big and sometimes noisy following of Samuel Adams was 
supported by the patriot members of the Council. 

On the day (Saturday, November 27) preceding the ar- 
rival of the Dartmouth, the first of the three tea-ships to 



52 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 46 

enter the harbor, the Council replied to the application of 
the governor and the tea agents with a refusal to aid the 
landing or safeguarding of the tea, giving as its reason that 
to do so would be to assent to the collection of the duty and 
thus to the principle of taxation by Parliament. 

Hutchinson deemed the reply so radical that he warned 
the Council "of the consequences of it; that it would be 
highly resented in England, and would be urged there, to 
shew the necessity of a change in their constitution."^*' 

On the following Monday, while the Dartmouth lay at 
anchorage and townspeople and visitors filled the Old South 
Meeting House to hang on the words of Samuel Adams, 
and Joseph Warren, and Hancock, and other speakers, 
Hutchinson was renewing his futile debate with the Council 
in the Court House. 

The patriot members adhered to their report — "all advice 
to secure the tea, upon its being landed, being expressly re- 
fused, because such advice would be a measure for procuring 
payment of the duty." 

Thus firmly upholding the hands of the Samuel Adams 
party were Ward (present at both the meetings mentioned), 
James Bowdoin, John Winthrop, George Leonard, James 
Pitts, and Samuel Dexter. 

Seventeen days later (December 16), in the semi-darkness 
of the candle-lit meeting-house, Samuel Adams gave the sig- 
nal: and his historic troop of "Mohawks" descended upon 
the tea-ships and emptied their proscribed cargoes into the 
harbor. 

A pregnant intermission now, while Hutchinson's dis- 
patches are tossed about on the wintry Atlantic as old- 
fashioned sailing-vessels tack across the ocean. There was 
little to be done by either party until the English government 
disclosed its intent on the receipt of the news. 

On February i, 1774, Ward was on the committee ap- 

" Hutchinson, History of Massachusetts Bay, III, 428-429. 



777^] THE DESTRUCTION OF THE TEA 53 

pointed to present the Council's answer to the governor's 
message of January 26. 

Hutchinson in his closing paragraph had conveyed "His 
Majesty's disapprobation of the appointment of Committees 
of Correspondence." The Council's answer declared that, 
"so far as this matter relates to the Board," the King's disap- 
proval could apply only to committees appointed to advise 
the colony agent in England, but it warmly defended the 
right to appoint, and the necessity for, such committees. 

The last days of the session were distinguished by the final 
chapter of the trouble over the judges' salaries: the House 
impeachment of Chief Justice Peter Oliver of the Superior 
Court for accepting his salary from the crown. 

The Council on March 7 appointed a committee (Ward 
a member) to wait on the governor with an address, dis- 
senting from his opinion, expressed to the House, that the 
process by impeachment and the governor and Council 
proceeding and determining upon it were unconstitutional; 
declaring the readiness of the Board "to hear and deter- 
mine on the Impeachment abovementioned, or to hear and 
determine on the charge and complaint since exhibited by the 
House of Representatives on the same subject"; and request- 
ing that he "with the Council" would appoint a time for the 
hearing. 

Realizing that he could not control the Council, Hutchin- 
son stopped the proceedings by dissolving the House. Tech- 
nically, he had the last word — but Peter Oliver never again 
presided in court and the committees of correspondence car- 
ried on the work, of the assembly. 

Word of the "Boston Tea Party" reached England before 
the end of January. Lord North struck back with his bill to 
close the Port of Boston. The measure traveled rapidly 
through Parliament. It was not presented until March 18 — 
but three readings and passage In both Commons and Lords, 
debates In both Houses, and the affixing of the King's signa- 
ture were all crowded Into fourteen days. 



54 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 46 

The act prohibited the shipping or unshipping of any 
goods at any point within the harbor, excepting only His 
Majesty's stores, and consignments of food and fuel for the 
inhabitants of Boston — and these consignments were to be 
rigidly inspected, and closely limited to "necessary use and 
sustenance." 



CHAPTER IV 

May 10, iyy4-April ig, iJJS' Age 46-4J 

The closing of the Port of Boston. The Regulating Act, and that for 
the "Impartial Administration of Justice." Ward a delegate to 
the Worcester County Convention. The closing of the courts. 
Ward's old regiment elects him Colonel. A delegate to the First 
and Second Provincial Congresses. Appointed second general 
officer of the province. The battle of April 19, 1775, and the land 
blockade of Boston. 

ON May 10 two merchantmen brought copies of the Port 
Act to Boston. 

Three days later His Majesty's ship Lively beat its 
way into the harbor and from it landed General "Tom" 
Gage — for a number of years commander-in-chief of the 
King's forces in North America, and now also commissioned 
to succeed Hutchinson as governor of Massachusetts. He 
had come with instructions to close the harbor of Boston; to 
transfer the port of entry to Marblehead; to remove the 
capital to Salem; and to punish the leaders of the opposition 
to British legislation. He was to be followed by a new influx 
of redcoats to uphold royal authority. 

Next morning Paul Revere set out on a big gray horse, 
riding fast, bound for New York and Philadelphia with 
Massachusetts' appeal for the support of her sister colonies, 
and her prayers for joint retaliation by stamping out all trade 
with Great Britain. Every country town through which he 
passed, received the word and radiated it for miles around. 
Other riders, traveling many routes, spread the news still 
wider; and a hundredfold echoed it and its appeal. 

The General Court convened on May 25. Gage's Initial 

55 



56 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 46 

speech, delivered on the following day, made no reference to 
the new conditions except to notify the assembly that by royal 
order it was after June i to meet in Salem, 

The Representatives accelerated their proceedings, plan- 
ning to conclude them before that date and thus avoid, tem- 
porarily at all events, the change in the seat of government, 
but Gage upset their calculations by suddenly adjourning them 
to meet at Salem on June 7. 

On Wednesday, June i, the closing act went into effect. 
The King's ships took possession of the harbor and nothing 
thenceforth could stir upon the face of the water without 
their permission. 

A pall of enforced idleness settled upon the town. So 
large a part of its trade and livelihood had been of and by 
the sea — both coastwise and ocean-going: ships and shipping, 
imports and exports, and many subsidiary interests and activ- 
ities along the docks and in warehouses and shops — that the 
closing of the port threw hundreds out of employment and 
brought scores of business houses to an abrupt halt. It would 
have spelled destitution to many but for donations, in money 
and kind, by sympathizers throughout the country, brought 
in by the Roxbury road over Boston Neck — the isthmus con- 
necting Boston with the mainland. That one road had become 
the capital's only free line of communication with the conti- 
nent. 

On June 9, the third day of the General Court session at 
Salem, the House and Council delivered their replies to 
Gage's address of May 26. The House answer consisted 
largely of objections to moving the seat of government, and 
was received without protest. But the Council's reply, pre- 
pared by Ward,^ stirred the governor to great ire. 

The Council's reply recognized that the position that Gage 
was assuming had been rendered more difficult by "the pecu- 

^ The draft, in Ward's hand, is among the Artemas Ward MSS. (owned by Artemas 
Ward, New York). The completed reply retained all of the ideas and much of the language. 



17741 MOVING TOWARD REBELLION 57 

liar circumstances of the times," but it hoped that his ad- 
ministration, in "principles and general conduct," might be 
a "happy contrast" to that of his "two immediate predeces- 
sors," for there was "the greatest reason to apprehend, that 
from their machinations, both in concert and apart," were 
"derived the origin and progress of the disunion between 
Great Britain and the colonies, and the present distressed 
state of the province." It stated that the people of Massa- 
chusetts claimed "no more than the rights of Englishmen" — 
but that they claimed those rights "without diminution or 
abridgement." Plainly and firmly it continued with the 
declaration that those rights, as it would be their indispens- 
able duty, so it should be their constant endeavor, to main- 
tain, to the utmost of their power — "in perfect consistence, 
however, with the truest loyalty to the Crown; the just pre- 
rogatives of which, your Excellency will find this Board ever 
zealous to support." 

The committee which presented the reply reported that 
when the chairman had read so far as that part which ex- 
pressed a wish that his administration might be "a happy 
contrast" to that of his two immediate predecessors, the 
governor told the chairman to stop, declaring that he could 
not receive an address which reflected so severely on his pre- 
decessors. 

He followed this, June 14, by a formal communication de- 
nouncing the address "as an insult upon his Majesty, and the 
Lords of the Privy Council" and an affront to himself. 

Three days later, on June 17, exactly a year before the 
battle of Bunker Hill, the House appointed delegates to a 
meeting of "Committees or Delegates" from all the colonies 
— a "Continental Congress" — to be held in Philadelphia: 
Samuel Adams, key in pocket, guarding the vote, and warding 
off the governor's attempt to dissolve the House, by keeping 
the tories locked in and the governor's messenger locked out. 

Meanwhile, back in Colonel Ward's home county, the jus- 
tices of the Court of Common Pleas, with Ward the only 



58 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 46 

exception, were hastening to place themselves on the tory 
side — Judge Timothy Ruggles leading them. As also were 
the justices of the peace attending the Court of General 
Sessions. Together, they prepared a letter to Gage which 
arraigned the "inflammatory pieces" of the Boston and 
Worcester committees as creating "discord and confusion," 
and promised to do everything in their power "to discounte- 
nance such proceedings, and to support the execution of the 
laws, and render your Excellency's administration successful 
and prosperous." 

For this production, delivered by Sheriff Chandler on June 
21, the early fall was to bring much retributive humiliation. 

Among the justices of the peace who signed it was Timothy 
Paine, who as a youth had sat next Ward at Harvard. 

In the country districts, every tavern served as a political 
club and all were abuzz with discussion. John Adams, in a 
reminiscent letter, records one of these familiar debates. 

"I stopped one night at a tavern in Shrewsbury, about forty 
miles from Boston, and as I was cold and wet, I sat down at a 
good fire in the bar-room to dry my great coat and saddle- 
bags till a fire could be made in my chamber. There presently 
came in, one after another, half a dozen, or half a score, 
substantial yeomen of the neighborhood, who, sitting down 
to the fire after lighting their pipes, began a lively conversa- 
tion upon politics. As I believed I was unknown to all of 
them, I sat in total silence to hear them. One said, 'The peo- 
ple of Boston are distracted.' Another answered, 'No 
wonder the people of Boston are distracted. Oppression will 
make wise men mad.' A third said, 'What would you say if 
a fellow should come to your house and tell you he was come 
to take a list of your cattle, that Parliament might tax you 
for them at so much a head? And how should you feel if 
he was to go and break open your barn, to take down your 
oxen, horses and sheep?' 'What should I say?' replied the 
first; 'I would knock him in the head.' 'Well,' said a fourth. 



777^] MOVING TOWARD REBELLION 59 

'if parliament can take away Mr, Hancock's wharf and Mr, 
Rowe's wharf, they can take away your barn and my house.' 
After much more reasoning in this style, a fifth, who had as 
yet been silent, broke out: 'Well, it is high time for us to 
rebel; we must rebel sometime or other, and we had better 
rebel now than at any time to come. If we put it off for ten 
or twenty years, and let them go on as they have begun, they 
will get a strong party among us, and plague us a great deal 
more than they can now.' " ^ 

The Shrewsbury farmers, envisaging the growth of the 
tory party, displayed remarkably clear insight. It was but 
a very little while later that Gage was rejoicing at tory de- 
velopments. He wrote, July 5, to Lord Dartmouth, Secre- 
tary of State for the American Department: "There is now 
an open opposition to the faction, carried on with a warmth 
and spirit unknown before, which it is highly proper and 
necessary to cherish, and support by every means; and I hope 
it will not be long before it produces very salutary effects,"^ 

Swiftly after the closing of the port came the news of the 
passing by the English Parliament of "An Act for the Better 
Regulating the Government of the Province of the Massa- 
chusetts Bay" and "An Act for the Impartial Administration 
of Justice," 

The first law struck at the very heart of the political sys- 
tem of the province. It prohibited the calling or holding of 
town-meetings, save by the express permission of the gov- 
ernor, excepting only annual gatherings confined to the 
election of town officers and Representatives, It snatched 
the choice of councilors from the province and vested their 
naming in the King, It placed the appointment of judges, 
sheriffs, and other civil officers in the hands of the governor 
— who was answerable only to the King, It took away the 

^ Works of John Adams, IX, 597. 
* American Archives, 4th, I, 515. 



So ARTEMAS WARD {Age 46 

right to elect jurors and gave their selection to the sheriffs 
who had thus been made amenable to the governor's fiat. 

The second law took from the province its right to try 
for capital offenses either government officials or those act- 
ing under their orders, and provided that they might be 
sent to any of the other colonies or to England for trial. 

The official copies of the acts were not received until August 
6 but their general tenor was known and debated early in 
June, and the threat of coercion was reiterated by each ship 
which unloaded reinforcements of British regulars. Boston 
wrote in indignation to the other provinces as well as to the 
country towns of Massachusetts, and both provinces and 
country towns echoed her anger in the heightened tone of 
their letters and resolutions. 

Many and great were now the grievances. The province 
could be taxed by men, three thousand miles away, who had 
never set foot upon Its soil and knew nothing of, or knew 
badly, its circumstances, needs, and traditions; its customary 
life as it pulsed in every township, great and small, was to 
be halted and cribbed by the town-meeting edict; its proper- 
ties and liberties were to be thenceforth in the hands of 
judges and juries over whom it had no longer even the shadow 
of either selection or control; it was to be held impotent to 
punish official violence; and It must submit, whether or no, 
to an English army ever in Its midst. 

With the official copies of the new acts had come a list of 
"mandamus councilors" (Timothy Ruggles and Timothy 
Paine among them) — a Council appointed in London, Instead 
of, as heretofore, one elected by the Massachusetts House of 
Representatives. 

The councilors who accepted their appointments speedily 
became objects of local patriot attention, but It was every- 
where realized that, unless untoward events should earlier 
precipitate trouble, the first important test of strength would 
come when the courts opened their sessions under the new 
laws. 



i774\ MOVING TOWARD REBELLION 6i 

On August 9 there gathered in Worcester its first county 
convention of committees of correspondence and delegates.^ 
The fifty-two men who came together in "the house of Mary 
Sternes [Stearns] inholder"*^ represented twenty-two town- 
ships. Some towns were represented by single delegates; 
others by two or more. One town mustered eight, including 
three captains, a doctor, and a deacon. From Shrewsbury 
came Colonel Ward, accompanied by Phinehas Heywood, 
who had succeeded as Representative on Ward's election to 
the Council. 

The student finds much interest in the proceedings of these 
county conventions, for by means of simple "resolutions" they 
abolished all authorized government and judicature in Massa- 
chusetts. The general enforcement of their resolutions dem- 
onstrates the strength of the public patriot opinion of the 
province. 

The prohibited town-meetings ruled the townships, and the 
county conventions directed them to concerted effort. It was 
the Interlocking framework of the two which gave the Pro- 
vincial Congress its vigorous life. 

Not one of Ward's associates of the Worcester County 
Court of Common Pleas was present at the convention. 
Timothy Ruggles had broken with his fellow-townsmen and 
made his way to the capital. The other judges — Thomas 
Steel and Joseph Wilder — had signed the tory letter to Gage 
and were also conspicuous by their absence. The lawyers of 
the county had likewise declared for the crown, following the 
lead of Jonathan Sewall (another of Ward's college class- 
mates), now become attorney-general of the province. 

The convention adopted a letter to the Massachusetts 
delegates to the Continental Congress, issued a call to the 

* The journal of the Worcester County convention is In Lincoln's Journals of each 
Provincial Congress, 627—652. 

' This was the King's Arms Tavern, but patriot records balked at thus describing it. 
The offending sign and title were taken down in July, 1776. A vaudeville house now 
stretches across the site of the tavern, and the Lincoln House Block (M,ain Street, Maple 
to Elm) covers its front yard. 



62 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 46 

towns not represented, and drew up a set of resolutions 
declaring that the people of Massachusetts owed no obedi- 
ence to the English Parliament, that they recognized no 
right but their own to legislate for them, that the charter of 
the province was the basis of their allegiance to the King of 
England, and that any attempt to vacate the charter would 
have a "tendency to dissolve the union between Great Britain 
and the province." It also "greatly" approved the non-con- 
sumption agreement as Hkely to convince their "Brethren in 
Britain, that more is to be gained in the way of justice, from 
friendship and affection, than by extortion and arbitrary 
power." 

Sixteen days later, on a call inspired by the town of Worces- 
ter, a considerable body of delegates gathered in the capital. 
They had come from the counties of Worcester, Middle- 
sex, and Essex, to confer with each other and with the Boston 
committee of correspondence. They declared that "no 
power on earth hath a right without the consent of this prov- 
ince to alter the minutest tittle of its charter"; moved for a 
Provincial Congress ; urged the obstruction of the courts until 
such a congress convened, and the boycott of their officers and 
adherents; and advised the practice of the military art. 

Partisan feeling mounted high. The Quebec Act height- 
ened the tension. "Liberty Poles" were erected, and many 
of the wealthier classes of the country townships fled into 
Boston. The English ministry were roundly denounced 
with picturesque epithets. Copies of the Port Act were pub- 
licly burned.*^ 

The presence of the garrison calmed the fears of the tories 

* Burning obnoxious literature was a favorite pastime on both sides of the Atlantic, 
and was indulged in by both government and objectors. Attempts to thus uphold minis- 
terial dignity sometimes resulted in ludicrously undignified disturbances. A good example 
is found in the execution of the House of Commons order of February 27, 1775, that the 
"Common Hangman" burn a copy of an offending issue of the vituperative little London 
Crisis in the New Palace Yard, Westminster, and anotlicr copy in front of the Royal 
Exchange ; and that "the sheriffs of London and Middlesex do attend at the same time 
and places respectively." 

At Westminster the copy was successfully burned, but immediately thereafter "a man 
threw into the fire the Address of both Houses of Parliament to his Majesty, declaring 



777-^] MOVING TOWARD REBELLION 63 

in Boston — alike those who claimed it as their home and 
those who had come in from the country — but otherwise life 
was not entirely pleasant even there for crown adherents. 
They suffered from the scorn of their patriot neighbors, and, 
jointly with them, had to bear the many ills which marched 
step by step with the soldiery of those days. Sickness was 
rife and dissolute female camp-followers were numerous. 

The second Worcester County convention — a two-day ses- 
sion, commencing August 30 — brought together one hundred 
and thirty members of committees of correspondence and "a 
number of deputies and gentlemen from several towns." 

Their first vote after the chaplain had opened the meet- 
ing with prayer, was, "by reason of the straitness of the place, 
and the many attending," to adjourn from Mary Stearns' 
house to the court-house. 

There, on the following day, they issued a call to the men 
of the county to be at Worcester on September 6 to prevent 
the sitting of the Court of Common Pleas and the General 
Sessions of the Peace under the new laws; recommended the 
towns and districts of the county to elect delegates to a "gen- 
eral provincial convention" at Concord on October 1 1 ; and 
published the means to be taken to spread the alarm in the 
event of "an invasion, or danger of an invasion" of any town 
in the county. 

Men were already thinking in terms of war. Before the 
meeting of the Continental Congress, before the meeting of 
the Provincial Congress, the men of Worcester County were 
thus counseled to be ready to repel an invasion by the enemy. 

The convention had barely dispersed when the province 

the Bostonians in actual rebellion ; likewise the Address of the Bishops and Clergy as- 
sembled in Convocation. The Sheriffs were much hissed for attending, and the populace 
diverted themselves with throwing the fire <vt each other." 

The burning of the second copy was a still more exciting and riotous event. "As soon 
as the fire was lighted before the Exchange, it was put out, and dead dogs and cats 
were thrown at tlie Officers; a fire was then made in Cornhill, and the pelting continued. 
Sheriff Hart was wounded in the wrist, and Sheriff Plomer in the breast, with a brick- 
bat; Mr. Gates, the City Marshal, was dismounted, and with much difficulty saved 
his life. Three of the ringleaders were taken into custody but were soon after rescued 
by the mob." — Kentish Gazette, March 8, 1775. 



64 ARTEMAS WARD [Age 46 

was aroused by the "Powder Alarm." Bred by the excitement 
raised by Gage's seizure of powder and field-pieces in 
Charlestown and Cambridge, a report ran wild that the red- 
coats had fired on the people and that the English army and 
English ships were cannonading Boston. A great rush of 
men started toward the capital and several thousand arrived 
In Cambridge and other near-by towns before the denial of 
the report could reach them. 

When they had been fully convinced that they were not 
needed, the men tramped back to their homes. For those of 
Worcester County, the return was accepted as only a brief 
respite! A day or two with their families — then afoot again 
to march to the county-town to prevent the opening of the 
courts. 

Gage had taken no steps to protect the courts in the west- 
ern counties, but the province had been warned that he In- 
tended to act decisively to prevent or overcome any obstruc- 
tion at Worcester; and that the courts scheduled to open 
there on September 6 would do so under the protection of 
English bayonets. 

The morning of September 6 saw Worcester occupied by 
a patriot army of 6000 men. They filled the main streets, 
the common, and the Immediate vicinity to overflowing. 
They were expecting trouble and they were ready for it. 

Judges Thomas Steel and Joseph Wilder"^ had come in 
with the Intention of sitting at the court's opening, despite 
the anger which they had aroused as signers of the justices' 
tory letter to Gage. But Judge Timothy Ruggles, fearing 
for his life, had told the governor that it would not be safe 
for him to attend. 

The county convention regathered in Timothy Bigelow's 
house, adjourning later to the "green beyond Mr. Salis- 

' Numerous authorities state that Judge Wilder died in 1773, the year preceding the 
Worcester County convention. Some of them give his death date as April 20, 1773. 
These statements are incorrect. It was Wilder's first wife, Deborah Joscelyn, who died 
on April 20, 1773. Wilder survived her, and the year following the Worcester County 
convention, he took to himself a second wife, the widow Rebecca (Richardson) Locke. 



i774\ MOVING TOWARD REBELLION G^ 

bury's." Its Initial resolution was that ^'the court should not 
sit on any terms.'* It next requested the people to come to- 
gether on the common and choose one man from each com- 
pany "as a committee to wait on the judges to Inform them 
of a resolution to stop the court's sitting, If the people con- 
cur therein." 

There followed a considerable delay, selecting the com- 
pany representatives and then hunting up the justices to in- 
form them officially — of what they had already learned 
beyond any manner of doubt! — that they would not be per- 
mitted to hold court. 

The justices were also told that they, together with the 
court officers, must show their submission to the will of the 
people by walking through the militia ranks to the court- 
house, there to affix their signatures to a promise to stay all 
judicial proceedings. 

Next for attention were the local subscribers to a tory 
protest of June 20. Most of them had signed a recantation 
and begged to be taken back Into the good will of the com- 
munity, but this was not considered sufficient — the convention 
instructed them that they must follow after the judges and 
publicly read their disavowals. 

Then, "notice" was taken of the justices who had signed 
the tory letter to Gage. 

The actors having been coached, the assembled militia- 
men massed in deep ranks on both sides of Main Street, 
extending from the Old South Church to the court-house. 

A great sight for patriot eyes — but it bred misgivings 
among the timid of the townspeople, whether patriot or 
tory. What would come of this show of force, this military 
array, this massing of the county militiamen against the edict 
of the King and in defiance of the English governor and 
commander-in-chief? Many apprehensive thoughts turned 
toward the Boston road, along which the redcoats might even 
then be approaching. Any moment might hear the galloping 
of horses bearing the alarm. 



66 ' ARTEMAS WARD lAge 46 

Then came the play — designed by its producers to impress 
upon all men the resolution of the people of Worcester 
County to maintain their supremacy; that higher than the 
law's officials were the people themselves, who would brook 
no laws other than of their own making. 

The word was given and the procession started. First 
through the "ranges" of the people came the judges of the 
Court of Common Pleas — two of the three (it would have 
been three of four If Ruggles had ventured from Boston) 
to be pointed at as men who had taken sides with the Eng- 
lish Parliament and against their own people. Artemas 
Ward was the one exception. 

After the judges, the officers of the court. 

Next followed the justices of the peace— many of these 
also to be pointed at as having signed the tory letter. A 
humiliating experience for men who had hitherto held them- 
selves proudly among their fellows ! 

Last came the townsmen who had subscribed to the local 
tory protest. 

Every minute or two the procession stopped while the 
"leaders," or chief men, among the local protesters humbly 
read their recantations. 

Arrived at the court-house, the "protesters" were dis- 
missed, but the justices and their attendants continued into 
the building and signed the following declaration : 

"Gentlemen: You having desired, and even insisted upon 
It, that all judicial proceedings be stayed by the justices of 
the courts appointed this day, by law, to be held at Worces- 
ter, within and for the County of Worcester, on account of 
the unconstitutional act of the British parliament, respecting 
the administration of justice in this province, which, if ef- 
fected, will reduce the inhabitants thereof to mere arbitrary 
power, we do assure you, that we will stay all such judicial 
proceedings of said courts, and will not endeavor to put said 
act into execution." 



iTJ4\ MOVING TOWARD REBELLION 67 

It goes without saying that Ward's signature was affixed to 
the document, for he was an active member of the con- 
vention which required its acknowledgment. More to the 
point is it that Judges Steel and Wilder, ex-mandamus coun- 
cilor Timothy Paine, and other justices of the peace who 
had signed the tory letter, were compelled thus to place 
themselves on record.^ 

The convention proceedings included also resolutions that 
all militia officers resign the commissions which they held in 
the name of the crown ; that the towns elect new company 
officers; and that every town "immediately" equip itself with 
one or more field-pieces, "mounted and fitted for use," and 
sufficient ammunition to make them effective. 

And thus the day journeyed on to its end. Its purpose had 
been achieved without a moment's disturbance, without a 
shot being fired. Gage had reconsidered his plan of sending 
troops, fearing to cast the die. The patriots of Worcester 
County had demonstrated their full control. 

On the morrow, those of the justices present who had 
participated in the letter to Gage were confronted with a 
new separate paper of complete submission, which also they 
signed. 

The convention next requested justices of the peace 
(with the exception of Timothy Ruggles, John Murray, and 
James Putnam), judges of the probate, sheriffs, and coroners 
appointed under the old province laws, to continue in office 
irrespective of any notices or proclamations removing them 
or interfering with them, and recommended to the people 
of the county "that they consider and treat them as being in 
their said offices, and support and defend them in the execu- 
tion thereof." 

After other sundry votes of less importance, it then ad- 
journed to September 20. 

' This narrative of the closing of the Worcester courts diflFers in details from every 
printed account that I have seen. It is, however, I believe, accurate in these differences. 
The most important source is the journal of the convention in Lincoln's Journals of each 
Provincial Congress, 635—639. 



68 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 46 

Gage's troubles increased even in Boston and he prepared 
to meet the future by fortifying Boston Neck. Thus he 
could at a moment's notice sever the capital from the 
province. 

September 8, the blacksmiths of the county of Worcester, 
with Ross Wyman of Shrewsbury as president, resolved that 
they would not work for any tories, nor for anyone of 
any political persuasion who did not sign and live up to the 
non-consumption agreement, and asked all other "artificers" 
to take similar action. 

On the ninth the Suffolk County convention unanimously 
adopted the famous "Suffolk Resolves" drawn up by Joseph 
Warren. Warren spoke as leader of the Boston patriots 
in the absence of Samuel Adams, who was then with John 
Adams, Robert Treat Paine, and Gushing in Philadelphia, 
representing Massachusetts in the First Continental Con- 
gress. 

In Philadelphia, the Massachusetts men found "a certain 
degree of jealousy in the minds of some" from the central 
and southern colonies. These jealous ones even feared that 
the New Englanders aimed "at a total independency, not only 
of the mother country, but of the colonies, too"; and that 
being a "hardy and brave people," they might in time "over- 
run them all."^ Nevertheless, to the consternation of the 
tory faction, the Congress adopted Warren's Suffolk Re- 
solves, drew up a statement of "rights and grievances," and 
entered into a non-importation, non-consumption, and non- 
exportation agreement. And — equally important in its after- 
results — Colonel Washington of Virginia so impressed the 
other delegates that Patrick Henry was moved to pay him 
the unstinted compliment that in "solid information and 
sound judgment" he was "the greatest man" of them all. 

Charles Lee was in Philadelphia while the Congress sat. 
He had completed a tour of the colonies and declared them 

'Samuel Adams to Joseph Warren, September 25, 1774. — Gushing, Writings of Samuel 
Adams, III, 158. 



777^] MOVING TOWARD REBELLION 69 

full of resolution to support and succor Boston. He as- 
serted that the very character of the provincials had changed 
and strengthened under the stress. He was ever talking, 
writing, and visiting; talking, writing, and visiting: red-hot 
for the patriot side. Higher and higher grew his ambition 
to crown his adventurous life by leading the colonies in rebel- 
lion against England. ^^ And more and more, men's minds 
tended toward him, and patriot councils everywhere rejoiced 
that America was assured of his hand and sword If war should 
come. 

The Worcester County convention sat again on September 
20 and 21. 

It voted "that the sheriff adjourn the Superior Court ap- 
pointed by law to be held this day." 

It also directed him to issue precepts for the choice of 
Representatives to the General Court called by Governor 
Gage for October 5 (writs for which had been issued on Sep- 
tember I ) , but it counseled the towns and districts to instruct 
the Representatives chosen to refuse to be sworn by any offi- 
cers save those "appointed according to the constitution," 
or to act in concert with the mandamus councilors, or to 
attend in Boston "while the town is invested with troops and 
ships of war." And "should there be anything to prevent 
their acting with such a governor and council as Is expressly 
set forth In the charter, that they immediately repair to the 
town of Concord, and there join In a provincial congress, 
with such other members as are or may be chosen for that 
purpose, to act and determine on such measures as they shall 

^"December 1 6, J 774, Lee wrote to Edmund Burke, in London, deprecating an 
English report that he had been "busy in dissuading the people of Boston from sub- 
mitting" and that he had offered to put himself at their head. He added that he hoped 
people did not believe that he possessed "so much temerity and vanity" as to think 
himself "qualified for the most important charge that ever was committed to mortal man." 
But, apart from this most uncharacteristic modesty, the reason he advanced against the idea 
was not his foreign birth, which barred him in the minds of the New England leaders 
and many others ; it was instead that he did not think the Americans would give the 
supreme command to anyone who had no property interest in the country. — Lee Papers, 
I, 148. Then shortly after — with great anxiety to complete the transaction — he set about 
purchasing an estate in Virginia and thus became himself an American property-owner. 



70 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 46 

judge to be proper to extricate this colony out of the present 
unhappy circumstances." 

Following this, the convention emphasized Its earlier ap- 
peal that every town provide Itself with one or more field- 
pieces, mounted and fitted for use; resolved for the redlvlslon 
of the county mllltia into seven regiments ; again advised the 
election of new officers — the company officers to be chosen 
by the men, and the company officers thus appointed to elect 
their field-officers; and recommended that one third of the 
men between sixteen and sixty years of age be enlisted, "to be 
ready to act at a minute's warning" — the famous organiza- 
tion of "minute-men." 

As county after county endorsed the cry for a Provincial 
Congress, the activities of the country townships increas- 
ingly alarmed Gage. On the day that the Worcester County 
convention met for the fourth time, he wrote to Lord 
Dartmouth: "The country people are exercising in arms, in 
this Province, Connecticut and Rhode Island, and getting 
magazines of arms and ammunition . . . and such artillery 
as they can procure, good and bad."^^ 

Eight days later, because "of the extraordinary resolves 
which have been passed in many of the counties," Gage is- 
sued a proclamation countermanding his summons for a Gen- 
eral Court on October 5. He feared, and probably with 
good reason, the outcome of a general gathering of Repre- 
sentatives. 

October 3, a week earlier than the date suggested In the 
Worcester County convention, we find Ward's old regiment 
putting him at its head. The following report is from the 
Massachusetts Spy, October 20 : 

"On the third instant, the regiment formerly belonging 
to the Hon. Artemas Ward, Esq., of Shrewsbury, in the 
county of Worcester, and who for his Integrity was dismissed 
in a former administration, from being Colonel of said regl- 

" September 20, 1774, American Archives, 4th, I, 795. 



177 4\ MOVING TOWARD REBELLION 71 

ment, met, and taking into serious consideration the present 
oppressed and distressed condition of this province in gen- 
eral, and the poor garrisoned and blockaded town of Boston 
in particular, after proper solemnity, proceeded as follows, 
I St. — They cheerfully, yet with a degree of indignation, 
flung up their commissions, which they sustained under the 
late Governor Hutchinson; then they proceeded very regu- 
larly to the choice of their field and commission officers, and 
unanimously made choice of the following gentlemen, viz. : 
the Hon. Artemas Ward, Colonel; Stephen Maynard, Esq., 
Lieut.-Colonel; Jonathan Ward, Esq., Second Lieut.-Colo- 
nel; Edward Ba[r]nes, Esq., Major; and Mr. Luke Denny, 
Adjutant." 

The same account notes that the town of Marlborough 
(Middlesex County) joined in the choice of these officers and 
that the regiment (the Sixth, under the new arrangement) 
consisted of the inhabitants of Marlborough,^^ Westborough, 
Shrewsbury, Southborough, Northborough, and Grafton: the 
first of the county of Middlesex, and the others of Worcester 
County. 

Despite Gage's proclamation, ninety Representatives ar- 
rived in Salem on or before October 5. They convened on 
the sixth, and on the following day adopted resolutions de- 
claring that the governor could not legally dissolve the Gen- 
eral Court before it met; that his proclamation was therefore 
unconstitutional; and that its statements were unjust and dis- 
respectful and proof of his "disaffection" toward the prov- 
ince. They followed this by resolving themselves "into a 
Provincial Congress, to be joined by such other persons as 
have been or shall be chosen for that purpose, to take into 
consideration the dangerous and alarming situation of public 
affairs In this province, and to consult and determine on such 
measures as they shall judge will tend to promote the true 

^^Marlborough (Marlboro), being in Middlesex, had not be';n listed in the Worcester 

County convention's rearrangement of the militia, but it had for geographical reasons 

formed part of a Worcester County regiment under the old arrangement and it continued 
so to constitute itself under the new conditions. 



72 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 46 

interest of his majesty and the peace, welfare, and prosperity 
of the province." 

The Representatives then formally organized as a "Pro- 
vincial Congress" and adjourned to meet at Concord on the 
following Tuesday (October 11). 

Arriving at Concord, the Representatives met the special 
delegates sent by a number of the towns. Ward was one of 
the first of the delegates to arrive. His associate from 
Shrewsbury was again Representative Heywood. 

The Congress assembled in the court-house, but, finding 
that it needed larger space, moved thence to the meeting- 
house (the "Old Third"), and there opened its proceedings 
with the election of John Hancock as president. 

The gathering included a goodly number of men who 
helped to make history — military and civil — In the following 
years. It contained a large proportion of fighting men: a 
full majority of those of middle age had seen service in the 
French and Indian wars, or had garrisoned the province 
frontiers. 

The country members already harbored the thought that 
the time had arrived for throwing off allegiance, and the 
more careful had difficulty in restraining them. John Pitts 
wrote that the Boston representatives were "by far the most 
moderate" men there. 

Some of the radically aggressive had conceived, and freely 
expressed, the theory that Great Britain's wealth and power 
rested chiefly on her American colonies, and that disunion, 
by shifting trade advantages to European competitors, 
would relegate the empire to insignificance. 

Representing the opposite view was much propaganda 
designed to affright. Typical is a printed broadside 
addressed "To the Provincial Congress," a copy of which 
was delivered to every member. It warned of an overwhelm- 
ing army of fifteen or eighteen thousand Canadians and In- 
dians ready to be let loose on both Massachusetts and 
Connecticut at a moment's notice. 



17741 MOVING TOWARD REBELLION 73 

"Now, gentlemen," it continued, "Coolly recollect our 
weak and defenceless State, and you will easily perceive how 
impossible it will be for us, to resist even one Third of such 
Force. Seriously and honestly call to Mind how compleatly 
miserable will then be our Situation, by being exposed to all 
the Cruelties and Barbarities of an implacable and Savage 
Enemy. When I cast my Eyes on my innocent and helpless 
Wife and Children, and recollect how soon they must fall 
into the Hands of Savages full of inveterate Hatred and 
Revenge, my very Soul is overwhelmed with Agonies, far be- 
yond the narrow Limits of Description: — Place yourselves 
under the same shocking Incumbrances, and you will quickly 
feel the Horrors of Despair and Anguish unutterable. . . . 
To paint the tragical Scene with its various and multiplied 
Miseries, but in a faint Light, requires more Time than is 
proper for a Letter. If you have any Pity, if any Compas- 
sion, if any Humanity, you will not, you cannot expose such 
Innocents to Torture and Death. . . . However you may 
now flatter yourselves, this Truth I am compelled to sound 
in your ears, that whatever Lives are lost, by your Indiscreet 
or rash Conduct, sooner or later must be, by you accounted 
for. . . ." 

The writer's threats and forebodings troubled Ward so 
little that he employed the reverse of his copy of the broad- 
side for the writing of non-importation agreement forms and 
militia resolutions. 

Ward was a member of both initial committees of the 
eleventh and also of the committee appointed on the twelfth 
"to take into consideration the state of the province." With 
him on the latter were Hancock, Joseph Warren, Joseph 
Hawley, Dr. Benjamin Church, Elbridge Gerry, James War- 
ren, William Heath, and others. 

The committee next day reported an address to Gage de- 
claring that the convening of the Congress had been rendered 
"indispensably necessary" by the "distressed and miserable 
state of the province occasioned by the intolerable grievances 



74 ARTEMAS WARD \_Age 46 

and oppressions to which the people are subjected"; and 
citing the Port Act, the Regulating Act and that labeled for 
the "Impartial Administration of Justice," and the hostile 
preparations in Boston — the increase in the number of troops, 
and the fortress on Boston Neck. 

It continued, "Permit us to ask your excellency whether 
an inattentive and unconcerned acquiescence [in] such alarm- 
ing, such menacing measures, would not evidence a state of 
insanity ; or whether the delaying to take every possible pre- 
caution for the security of the province, would not be the 
most criminal neglect in a people heretofore rigidly and 
justly tenacious of their constitutional rights?" 

The address was accepted with only one dissentient vote, 
and Ward was placed on the committee appointed to deliver 
it to Gage. 

On the following day, immediately prior to adjourning, the 
convention accepted a resolution of the Committee on the 
State of the Province which declared against the transfer of 
any province moneys to the provincial tax receiver. It also 
strongly recommended the payment of outstanding taxes to 
persons to be named by the towns and districts themselves. 

Meeting again in Cambridge, October 17, the Congress 
received the governor's reply to its address. It was referred 
to the Committee on the State of the Province; as also were 
the letters of the Reverend Samuel Peters, who predicted 
"hanging work" (with the patriots for victims) as a quick 
sequence to the arrival of the additional redcoats on their 
way across the ocean. 

Three days later came the naming of a new committee 
(Ward a member) to consider "what is necessary to be now 
done for the defence and safety of the province." 

The final amended report of this new committee was ac- 
cepted October 26. It established a Committee of Safety 
with duties of watchfulness, and power to call out and direct 
the militia "whenever they shall judge it necessary for the 
safety and defence of the inhabitants of this province"; a 



i774\ MOVING TOWARD REBELLION 75 

subordinate Committee of Supplies; and General Officers to 
command. 

It also urged the prompt officering of the militia in towns 
that had not already so organized; that any Inhabitants of 
the province, not already supplied, Immediately provide 
themselves with arms and ammunition; and the preparation 
of "a well digested plan for the regulating and disciplining 
the militia, placing them in every respect on such a per- 
manent footing as shall render them effectual for the preser- 
vation and defence of the good people of this province." 

The next morning saw the election of the Committee of 
Safety; and the afternoon following, that of the Committee 
of Supplies. 

"It was then moved, that the Congress proceed to the 
choice of three General Officers" to command the militia In 
the event of Its being called out by the Committee of Safety. 
And Jedediah Preble, Artemas Ward, and Seth Pomeroy 
were elected, to rank in the order named.^^ 

The appointment of these men is a high tribute to the 
esteem In which they were held by the province representa- 
tives. Massachusetts was preparing for war, if need be, 
against one of the world's great powers. A New York 
writer had voiced the thoughts of many when he expressed 
It as the "maddest of all possible Quixotlsms to think of mak- 
ing an hostile opposition" to the army and navy of Great 
Britain,^"* — but that Is what the leaders of Massachusetts 
were deliberately planning, unless the English government 
should grant the province everything but nominal independ- 

" The career of Artemas Ward (now 47 years of age, lacking one month) we have 
already considered in these pages. 

Jedediah Preble, 67 years old, had seen a variety of service in the French war and 
had risen to the rank of brigadier-general in the provincial service. 

Seth Pomeroy, 68 years old, had as major been present at the capture of Louisburg, 
1745 (chiefly in charge of a corps of gunsmiths), and ten years later had, as acting- 
colonel of Ephraim Williams' regiment, commanded in the hottest part of the fierce 
battle of Lake George, which resulted in the utter defeat of the French and Indian 
forces and the capture of Baron Dieskau, the French commander-in-chief in Canada. 
He was a delegate to both the First and Second Provincial Congresses. 

" American Archives, 4th, I, 289, note. 



76 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 46 

ence. They prayed, and believed, that In the day of trial they 
would be upheld by the other colonies, but their belief held 
no assurance that the other colonies would carry support to 
the point of open warfare. And they knew that on the 
courage, patriotism, and integrity of the men chosen as gen- 
eral officers, largely depended the fate and future of the 
province, the political freedom they cherished so highly, and 
their own lives, if, as rebels, they should fail to make good 
their defiance of England. 

On the day of the election of the general officers, and the 
day following (October 27 and 28), the Congress demon- 
strated Its desire to adhere as closely as possible to the 
charter government by requesting, individually and collec- 
tively, the attendance of all members of the Council elected 
and accepted in the spring, "that this body may have the 
benefit of their advice upon the important matters that may 
then come under consideration." These councilors had been 
officially superseded by the mandamus councilors appointed 
by the King under the obnoxious new Regulating Act, but this 
supersession was ignored. The Intent Is plain to continue 
the recognition of the Council elected in conformity with the 
charter: Gage's vetoes were respected — none of the thirteen 
whom he had refused as councilors were invited to sit as 
such, though several of them were present in the Congress; 
and the only omission from his list of fifteen acceptances was 
of Danforth, who had been sworn In as a mandamus coun- 
cilor. 

Among the final acts of the session were the appointment 
of Henry Gardner as Receiver-General, accompanied by the 
recommendation that all province moneys be turned over to 
him; and the reading and acceptance of the reply, prepared 
by the Committee on the State of the Province, to the gov- 
ernor's communication of October 17. 

Gage had sought to justify his fortification of Boston 
Neck, blamed the patriots for "open and avowed disobedi- 
ence" to English authority, declared that by convening as a 



17741 MOVING TOWARD REBELLION 77 

Provincial Congress the delegates were "subverting the 
charter," and demanded that they "desist from such illegal 
and unconstitutional proceedings." 

The Congress reply was strong and spirited. It reminded 
the governor that not only was the Boston Neck fortress 
both a continuous threat and a continuous annoyance to the 
town of Boston, but that the very presence of the troops 
in the province without the consent of the Representatives, 
was illegal. It ridiculed the charge that the Provincial Con- 
gress was a violation of the charter, and asserted that, on 
the contrary, its convening had been "directed by the prin- 
ciples of the constitution itself; warranted by the most ap- 
proved precedent and examples, and sanctioned by the British 
nation at the revolution; upon the strength and validity of 
which precedent the whole British constitution now stands, 
his present majesty wears his crown, and all subordinate 
officers hold their places." 

The session terminated on the same day (Saturday, Octo- 
ber 29). 

The following Wednesday the Committee of Safety held 
its initial meeting. Its first recommendation to the Com- 
mittee of Supplies was for the purchase of pork, flour, rice, 
and peas. Next, for "arms and ammunition" and "large 
pieces of cannon." Later, came those for spades, pickaxes, 
cooking-pots, etc. 

The Provincial Congress gathered again at Cambridge 
on November 23. 

It heartily approved the "bill of rights" and enumeration 
of grievances drawn up by the Continental Congress, and its 
non-importation, non-consumption, and non-exportation reso- 
lutions; and it elected representatives to the Second Conti- 
nental Congress. 

It counseled the encouragement of every provincial in- 
dustry and particularly advised the manufacture of saltpetre 
and gunpowder. Its resolutions declared gunpowder to be 
"an article of such importance, that every man among us 



78 ARTEMAS WARD [J^e 46-47 

who loves his country, must wish the establishment of manu- 
factories for that purpose." It spoke of "the ruins of sev- 
eral powder mills, and sundry persons among us who are 
acquainted with that business," and it recommended "en- 
couragement by repairing one or more of said mills, or 
erecting others" and renewing the industry "as soon as pos- 
sible." 

It added John Thomas^^ and William Heath^*' to the 
staff of general officers: Thomas as fourth, Heath as fifth. 

On the morning of its last day, December 10, it called 
upon the committees of correspondence to obtain and re- 
port the names of those who had signed or who might sign 
the tory "Association" started by Timothy Ruggles. The 
Ruggles covenant pledged its members to oppose the "au- 
thority of any Congresses, committees of correspondence, 
or other unconstitutional assemblies of men," and "if need 
be" to "repel force with force." 

Immediately after the adoption by the Congress of its 
tory association resolution, the Committee on the State of 
the Province (of which General Ward continued a member) 
reported an address to the inhabitants of Massachusetts 
Bay. It was ordered printed in the Boston newspapers 
and in handbills, and forwarded to all towns and districts. 
It reminded the province that the men of Massachusetts were 
"placed by Providence in the post of honor, because it was 
the post of danger" ; and counseled enforcement by each town 
of strict adherence to the plans of the Continental and Pro- 
vincial Congresses. 

It continued with advice concerning the equipment and 
pay of the "minute-men": 

"John Thomas was about 50 years old. His first army service had been as a 
surgeon. Later, in 1758, 1759, and 1760, he was colonel of expeditionary regiments 
which saw duty in Nova Scotia, and at Crown Point, Montreal, etc. In 1760 his regi- 
ment formed part of the army which compelled the surrender of Montreal. He was a 
delegate to the First and Second Provincial Congresses. 

"William Heath was 37 years old. He had seen no active service but he had achieved 
local prominence as a militia officer. He had served several years as a Representative, 
and was a delegate to the First and Second Provincial Congresses and a member of the 
Committee of Safety. 



i77i-^775\ MOVING TOWARD REBELLION 79 

"We now think that particular care should be taken by 
the towns and districts In this colony, that each of the minute- 
men, not already provided therewith, should be Immediately 
equipped with an effective firearm, bayonet, pouch, knapsack, 
thirty rounds of cartridges and balls, and that they be dis- 
ciplined three times a week, and oftener, as opportunity may 
offer. To encourage these, our worthy countrymen, to ob- 
tain the skill of complete soldiers, we recommend It to the 
towns and districts forthwith to pay their own minute-men a 
reasonable consideration for their services; and In case of 
a general muster their further services must be recompensed 
by the province. An attention to discipline the militia In 
general Is, however, by no means to be neglected." 

The committee next submitted, and the delegates adopted, 
resolutions dissolving the Congress because it had already 
sat longer than the people of the province had anticipated, 
but earnestly recommending the election of delegates to a 
new Congress. 

Meantime, Charles Lee had joined the Annapolis con- 
vention of Maryland county deputies and he found there wide 
scope for his energy. He helped to Inspire the gathering 
to vigor, furnished plans for a new organization of the 
Maryland militia, and personally superintended the arrange- 
ments for mustering companies. 

The first quarter of 1775 was rich with happenings. 
Novanglus and Massachusettensis disputed; the drilling and 
arming continued. 

The Worcester County convention met again on January 
26 for another two-day session. General Ward acted as 
chairman and also served on a committee appointed to "take 
into consideration a plan for this county to adopt respecting 
the non-consumption covenants of the Continental and Pro- 
vincial Congress." 

The committee recommended the signing of non-consump- 
tion covenants by everyone who had not already done so; 



8o ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 47 

presented a covenant which "heartily approved" the form 
drawn up by the Continental Congress and amplified by the 
Provincial Congress; and pledged the members of the con- 
vention to strict adherence to its every article and clause. 

On the second day Ward was on four committees, the most 
important being one to "take the affairs of trade into con- 
sideration, and to remonstrate against riots and routs." 

The committee's report declared that the enemies of 
America's cause were "assiduously endeavoring" to provoke 
the patriot party to acts of violence, so that they might "have 
a pretence" to represent them as the aggressors; and ad- 
vised great care "in discountenancing and suppressing all 
acts of violence, except so much as is necessary to carry the 
resolves of the Continental and Provincial Congress into 
execution." 

It continued that, confident of the justice of their cause, 
they were determined "firmly and religiously to support and 
maintain" their rights — ''''even to the loss of our lives and 
fortunes." 

The second Provincial Congress opened in Cambridge on 
February i. Ward, this time alone as Shrewsbury's repre- 
sentative, became again a member of a committee "to take 
into consideration the state and circumstances of the Prov- 
ince." 

A tory handbill distributed a few days later (February 6) 
warned of the fate of Wat Tyler, and advocated the seizure 
of the patriot leaders. It continued: "Never did a people rebel 
with so little reason; therefore our conduct cannot be justi- 
fied before Godl Never did so weak a people dare to con- 
tend with so powerful a State; therefore it cannot be justified 
by prudence. It is all the consequence of the arts of crafty 
knaves over weak minds and wild enthusiasts, who, if we 
continue to follow, will lead us to inevitable ruin. Rouse, 
rouse, ye Massachusetians, while it be yet timel" '^'^ 

February 9, the Congress adopted a new commission 

^"'American Archives, 4th, I, 1216. 



7775] MOVING TOWARD REBELLION 8i 

(drawn up by the Committee on the State of the Province) 
for the Committee of Safety, specifically defining its "busi- 
ness and duty" as the prevention of any attempt to apply 
either the Regulating Act or that for the "Impartial Ad- 
ministration of Justice." 

It next took up the choice of general officers — reelecting 
those voted by the First Congress : Jedediah Preble, Artemas 
Ward, Seth Pomeroy, John Thomas, and William Heath — 
again to command in the order named. 

As a result of the precedence thus confirmed. General 
Ward became commander-in-chief of the Massachusetts 
forces at the very outset of armed resistance, for Preble, 
elected to the first place, did not act upon his appointment. 

On February 9, also. Ward was named on a committee 
"to bring in a resolve directing how the ordnance in the 
Province shall be used." 

February 11, he was, with Samuel Adams, Joseph Warren, 
Hancock, Hawley, Robert Treat Paine, and Tyng, appointed 
to draw up "a resolve purporting the determination of the 
people, coolly and resolutely, to support their rights and, 
privileges at all hazards." 

The afternoon of February 15, he was on a special com- 
mittee to call upon a committee that had arrived from Con- 
necticut; and in the evening he conferred with them as a 
member of the Committee on the State of the Province. 

The same day, John Whitcomb^^ was added to the list 
of general officers. 

^' John Whitcomb, about 6i years old, was colonel of the minute-men of the Second 
Worcester regiment. In the Ticonderoga expedition, 1758, he had been lieutenant- 
colonel of Bagley's regiment; and he held the command of a regiment at the capture 
of Montreal, 1760. He had served many years as a Representative, and was one of the 
"Glorious Ninety-Two." He was elected to the Council in 1773, but preferred to stay 
in the House. 

The Whhcomh Family in America, 194, and Henry S. Nourse, American Antiquarian 
Society Proceedings, New Series, VH, 97, say that Whitcomb was in the Lake George 
battle, September 8, 1755; but accounts of the battle have no mention of his (Willard's) 
regiment: the only Massachusetts regiments cited are Williams', Ruggles', and Titcomb's. 
Whitcomb had probably not arrived by September 8. He was in Deerfield August 30 
and was expected to start out the next day. — Letter of Jonathan Ashley, Neiv England 
Historical and Genealogical Register, IV, 87. He was perhaps in the reinforcements 
which arrived shortly after the battle. 



82 ARTEMAS WARD [J^e 47 

The Congress adjourned on the following afternoon and 
Ward returned to Shrewsbury. 

Meanwhile, the Committees of Safety and Supplies added 
to the patriot stores of ammunition, food, etc., making Con- 
cord and Worcester the chief depots. 

February 21, the Committee of Safety voted that the 
Committee of Supplies should "purchase all kinds of military 
stores, sufficient for an army of 15,000 men to take the field." 
Next day, that it buy tents, lead balls, etc., and employ men 
to make thirty rounds of cartridges for the entire force. 

On the twenty-third, the committees voted the sending of 
two field-pieces to each regiment. 

Unfortunately, it was easier to vote the purchase of "all 
kinds of military stores" than to obtain them. The Commit- 
tee of Supplies worked industriously, but the result fell far 
short of the needs anticipated — and later severely experi- 
enced. 

As spring approached. Gage sent out his spies. Among 
them were Captain William Browne, of the Fifty-second 
Regiment of Foot, and Ensign Henry de Birniere,^^ of the 
Tenth Regiment, who together reconnoitered the route from 
Boston to Worcester. De Birniere's account of their experi- 
ences has become a classic. 

It was in Framingham-, on their return trip, that the two 
Enghshmen, gazing through the windows of Buckminster's 
tavern, witnessed the drilling of a company of militia. 

"After they had done their exercise," wrote De Birniere, 
"one of their commanders spoke a very eloquent speech, rec- 
ommending patience, coolness and bravery (which indeed 
they much wanted) ; particularly told them they would al- 

" Histories print the ensign's surname variously: as, De Bermcrc or D'Bcrmcrc (with 
or without an accent on the penultimate "e"), De Bernicre or D'Bernicre. I have 
avoided all these forms, following instead that of the English Army Lists, which record 
the name both with and without the prefatory "de," but are consistent in always spelling 
it (both in print and in script) with an "i" as the first vowel (Birniere). 

I have taken the same authority for the addition of a final "e" to the Captain's surname. 



7775] MOVING TOWARD REBELLION 83 

ways conquer if they did not break, and recommended them 
to charge us cooly and wait for our fire, and everything 
would succeed with them — quotes Caesar and Pompey, briga- 
diers Putnam and Ward, and all such great men; put them 
in mind of Cape Breton, and all the battles they had gained 
for his Majesty in the last war, and observed that the regu- 
lars must have been ruined but for them." 2° 

While Browne and De Birniere were spending Sunday 
(February 26) in semi-concealment in Worcester, Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel Leslie's battalion was making its abortive at- 
tempt to secure the cannon held by the patriots near Salem. 
These cannon worried Gage, for they were suspected to be 
new brass field-pieces smuggled in from Holland. In reality 
they were only old iron 12-pounders, relics of the French 
war, but even old cannon were hugely valuable to the patriots, 
for they possessed and could obtain very few of any age or 
calibre. 

Scarcer still were available artillerymen. Ward's letter 
of February 27 to David Cheever, a member ,of the Com- 
mittee of Supplies, notes that there was not one man in his 
district competent to teach the handling of the two cannon 
to be delivered for his regiment. He adds: "There is a 
person in this town who understands the Exercise but has of 
late discovered such Sentiments in Political matters that I 
dare not trust him."^^ 

The last remark is typical of the soul-racking uncertainty 
of the period. The dividing lines of American and English 
nationality have now for generations been so clear and strong 
that, despite the labors of modern historians, many people 
find it difl'icult to realize that the Revolution held much of the 
anguish of civil war. 

Symptoms of insurrection were showing everywhere 
throughout the province, but Gage held back from any de- 

^'^ Massachusetts Historical Society Collections, 2d, IV, 209-210; and elsewhere. 
^ Original letter, Massachusetts Archives, CXLVI, 2. 



84 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 47 

cisive move to check its rise. Across the sea came word from 
the English government advising the arrest and imprison- 
ment of the principal members of the Provincial Congress. 
It would be better, declared Lord Dartmouth, that the con- 
flict be thus brought on, than in a riper state of rebellion. 
But Gage and his associates feared — or did not think it poli- 
tic — to take the step. 

At the next session of the Provincial Congress, opened on 
March 22, the members were instructed to give to the Com- 
mittee on the State of the Province all information which 
had "fallen within their knowledge" concerning the number 
of field-pieces in the province, irrespective of their owner- 
ship, and also concerning the number of men "acquainted 
with the business of making firearms." 

A few days later (March 30), the committee "reported 
a resolve, relative to what movements of the troops should 
make it fit to call the militia together." 

On the following day it brought in a resolution (passed) 
urging upon towns and districts the immediate and compul- 
sory transfer of all province money in the hands of tax col- 
lectors and constables who had refrained from paying it over 
to the Provincial Congress Receiver-General. The resolution 
also recommended that the towns "without delay" collect any 
unpaid taxes; and concluded by counseling that they "vigor- 
ously exert themselves to suppress every opposition to meas- 
ures recommended by the Continental and Provincial Con- 
gresses," as they esteemed "the freedom and happiness of 
themselves and future generations." 

Immediately thereafter came a resolution that "if there is 
any town which does not incline to pay their public moneys 
to Mr. Gardner, they are desired to give their reasons for 
such refusal to this Congress." 

The next morning the committee reported an encouraging 
and laudatory address to the Stockbridge Indian minute- 
men, and introduced a resolution (passed) to purchase a 
blanket and a yard of ribbon for each of them. 



7/75] MOVING TOWARD REBELLION 85 

April 2, came word that left no doubt of the passage of 
a bill which was to lay excessive restraint on colonial com- 
merce and to ban American ships from fishing on the New- 
foundland Banks. Further, that England had declared the 
province in rebellion and had ordered reinforcements to sub- 
due it, sending also instructions for the shipping of the 
patriot leaders to England. To the old-style English tory, 
there was grim joy in the anticipation of a London display 
of the severed heads of American rebels. 

Later, there arrived the report that the hangings would 
take place in Boston. 

Stiles noted^^ that Parliament's declaration depressed 
"some timid persons," but that "in general the Friends of 
Liberty are hereby exasperated and declare themselves ready 
for the Combat, and notlung is now talked of but immediately 
for^ning an American army at Worcester and taking the 
Field with undaunted Resolution." 

The Congress quickly reacted to the new challenge. Militia 
plans no longer seemed sufficient. On April 8 the Com- 
mittee on the State of the Province brought in a resolve for 
the raising and establishment of a provincial army; and for 
the appointment of delegates "to repair to Connecticut, 
Rhode Island, and New Hampshire" to tell them of this 
determination by Massachusetts, and "to request them to 
co-operate ... by furnishing their respective quotas for 
the general defence." The Congress adopted the resolution 
by a vote of 96 to 7. 

It followed this (April 8 and 10) with instructions to the 
committee to "take into consideration what number of men 
. . . will be necessary to be raised by the four New Eng- 
land governments for their general defence" ; and "to 
draught such instructions as they shall think necessary to be 
given to the delegates appointed to repair to the neighboring 
gq^^ernments." 

April 10, the committee "reported a resolve, relative to 

^^ Literary Diary of Ezra Stiles, I, 530, April 4. 



86 ARTEMAS WARD [Jge 47 

exercising the minute-men in battalions, and that they be paid 
out of the public treasury." After a long debate this resolu- 
tion was defeated. 

April 12, the committee brought in a resolve (passed) 
arranging for county committees "whose business it shall be 
to receive from the committees of correspondence in their 
respective towns, a state of the conduct of the towns and dis- 
tricts with respect to their having executed the continental and 
provincial plans," and to lay their reports before the Con- 
gress at its next session, "that any neglect of such towns and 
districts in executing such plans may be speedily and effectu- 
ally remedied." 

April 13, the committee introduced a resolution (passed) 
providing for six artillery companies "to immediately enter 
on discipline, and constantly be in readiness to enter the 
service of the colony," and that the Committee of Safety 
"draw on the public treasury for paying said companies a 
suitable consideration for their services." 

April 14, the committee reported a plan for officering 
the proposed provincial army. It was immediately accepted 
by the Congress, and the Committee of Safety was in- 
structed "to apply to a suitable number of persons, to be 
in readiness to enter the service of this colony, to act as 
field officers: such field officers, in conjunction with the com- 
mittee, to apply to proper persons as captains, and they to 
determine on such subaltern officers as may be necessary for 
each regiment, when an army shall be raised; the committee 
and officers caeteris paribus to give the preference to persons 
who have been chosen officers in the regiments of minute- 
men." But events broke too quickly for the plan to be matured, 
and the militiamen — both the "standing militia" and the min- 
ute-men — went into war under officers of their own choice and 
election. 

On the following day the Congress adjourned. It had 
been a very full and hard-working session for General Ward. 
He had been continuously a member of the Committee on 



7775] THE BATTLE OF APRIL 19 87 

the State of the Province, and It was this committee which 
had led and directed the Congress. 

Three days later, the Committees of Safety and Supplies 
awoke to the danger of concentrating so large a proportion 
of their scant but very valuable war supplies at Concord, 
and a joint meeting directed that the ammunition be dis- 
tributed among nine towns. It also made various other ar- 
rangements for the safer and more convenient custody of 
provisions, equipment, etc. 

Some cartloads were removed that same day (April 18), 
but before the work was well started the curtain was rung up 
on the first battle of the Revolution. Gage had got wind of 
the depots and caches at Concord, and that night a detach- 
ment of English grenadiers, light infantry, and marines set 
out to destroy them. 

The story of Lexington and Concord — of the Battle of 
April 19 — has been depicted by a thousand writers. The 
riding of Revere and Dawes and Dr. Prescott — and many 
other less famed messengers — to arouse the country. The 
village green at Lexington in the early morning, and the 
firing of the first shots of the war of the American Revolu- 
tion. The confident tramp of the Englishmen on to Concord. 
The swelling tide of the militia. The sharp contest at the 
bridge. Then — the retreat of the British regulars, "driven 
before the Americans like sheep"; running the gauntlet of 
Yankee muskets, every furlong rendering its quota of dead 
or wounded. So hot the pace that when they met Lord 
Percy and his relief brigade the survivors threw themselves 
on the ground, "their tongues hanging out of their mouths." ^^ 
And the continued retreat of the united English forces — 
nearly two thousand of the proudest infantry of the Old 
World. 

In the speed and stress of that running twenty-mile fight, 
many of the militia companies disintegrated into pursuing 
individuals or small changing groups only intermittently co- 

"' Stedman, History of the American War, I, 133. 



88 ARTEMAS WARD [J^e 47 

heslve — but even so they persisted, mobile and in deadly 
earnest, an irresistible "moving circle" of musketmen, and 
pursued the enemy up to Charlestown Neck. 

Here, in the dusk of the evening, the fighting ceased. 
General Heath and other American leaders called a halt. 
The English troops were permitted to enter the city without 
further molestation, but "the rebels," wrote De Birniere, 
"shut up the Neck" and "placed sentinels there. ... So that 
in the course of two days, from a plentiful town, we were 
reduced to the disagreeable necessity of living on salt provi- 
sions, and fairly blocked up in Boston." ^^ 

English troops and English authority were bottled in the 
capital, and Massachusetts never again acknowledged either. 

It was learned that two could play at the sport of block- 
ading. The English government had willed a water blockade 
of the capital on June i, 1774. American militiamen estab- 
lished a land blockade on April 19, 1775.^^ 

^* Massachusetts Historical Society Collections, 2d, IV, 218. 

^ The rallying of Massachusetts' men on April 19 was very dififerent from the 
disordered rush toward Boston in the preceding September. Every man carried a musket 
and he set out with his neighbors in company formation. Companies meeting at cross- 
roads joined in battalions and thus pushed on in substantial strength. Though forma- 
tion was speedily lost by many of those who took part in the fighting, it was retrieved 
after the halt at Charlestown Neck and the occupation of Cambridge and Roxbury directly 
subsequent. 

For the great improvement in organization achieved by a majority of the townships, 
the credit must be variously divided — among the militiamen themselves, and the various 
bodies and individuals who inspired and directed their reconstitution and training. To the 
minute-men and the standing militia rank and file is, however, due the largest share of the 
special honors earned on April 19 — the chief credit for the sudden effectiveness with 
which the English troops were driven back, and their startling transformation into a 
beleaguered garrison. The Provincial Congress had empowered the Committee of Safety 
to call out the militia, and the general officers to command and direct it if it should be 
thus called out ; but neither the minute-men nor the standing militia had waited for the 
call of either the Committee of Safety or the general officers — or even, in many cases, 
of their regimental officers. Immediately on word that the English were coming out, or 
of the firing at Lexington- — and long before any general order could have reached them — 
the men had come together in their town companies and marched to meet the enemy. 



CHAPTER V 

April 20-June 15, IJJS- ^9^ 47 

General Ward takes command of the army besieging Boston. His 
Council of War plans to fortify Dorchester Heights. The diffi- 
culties in organizing an army and the peril of anarchy. Benjamin 
Church's early attempt to betray his country. Ward commis- 
sioned as Commander-in-chief of the Massachusetts forces. Gen- 
eral Gage determines to occupy Dorchester Heights and to follow 
this with the seizure of the Charlestown peninsula. The Com- 
mittee of Safety recommends the occupation of Bunker Hill. The 
Council of War resolves to occupy both Bunker Hill and Dor- 
chester Heights. The final decision for Bunker Hill alone. Col- 
onel Prescott given the command of the detachment. 

GENERAL WARD lay ill in bed when the express 
rider galloped through Shrewsbury with news of 
the clash at Lexington. But next morning at daybreak he 
mounted his horse and set out toward Boston, joining and 
passing company after company of the militiamen filling the 
roads as they also hurried eastward to the capital. 

From Shrewsbury to Cambridge is now a pleasant motor 
trip, but on horseback over the rough highway of the year 
1775 it could have been no holiday jaunt for a middle-aged 
man afflicted with bladder-stone. Yet Ward unhesitatingly 
journeyed it to direct the dangerous enterprise of rebellion 
against the world-famed power of Great Britain. 

Those men of New England who thus unflinchingly ac- 
cepted duty's call to leadership, and, leading, dared, arms 
in hand, to oppose the authority of the King and Parliament 
of England, risked a fate far more bitter than death on the 
battlefield. They dared also the hangman's gallows — and, 



90 ARTEMAS WARD [Age 47 

beyond, perchance the horrors of the severed head and limbs 
rotting by the roadside. Such things have been impossible in 
England for a century or more — but they were not impossible 
then. Nor did they seem so to Ward and his associates, for 
they had been young men grown at the time of the Jacobite 
hangings and beheadings of 1746. 

The risk of punishment for treason was much greater 
when Ward assumed the leadership than when Washington 
took hold. Behind Ward, and the other early leaders of the 
Revolution, were only the forces of New England — indeed, 
at the first challenge, only the forces of Massachusetts. 
When Washington was appointed, he had the patriot element 
of thirteen colonies at his back. 

On Ward's arrival at Cambridge he took command of 
the besieging forces and called a council of war — the first 
Revolutionary council of war.^ Three general officers 
were present — Ward himself, William Heath, and John 
Whitcomb; six colonels, including William Prescott of Pep- 
perell — later "of Bunker Hill"; and six lieutenant-colonels. 
Samuel Osgood acted as aide-de-camp to General Ward and 
Joseph Ward as secretary.^ 

' The council probably met in Jonathan Hastings' house, which from an early date 
(perhaps from the first day of the siege) served as headquarters for both Ward and 
the Committee of Safety. The house is portrayed on the page opposite. The lower 
sketch is of the main entrance hall, that to the south (on the right of the upper 
illustration), opening into the southeast room, Ward's office. The Committee of Safety 
met in the rear room adjoining. To the left of the west entrance was the "long, 
low dining-room" in which Ward entertained Washington on his arrival at Cambridge. 
The house is best known as the "Holmes House," for it achieved nineteenth-century 
fame as the birthplace and residence of Oliver Wendell Holmes. Later it became the 
property of Harvard College and was torn down in the -spring of 1884, following the 
completion of Austin Hall Law School nearby. Its site is marked by a stone memorial. 

° Joseph Ward, a schoolmaster by profession, a man of thirty-eight years, and General 
Ward's second cousin once removed, had been enrolled in the forenoon by Heath, fifth 
general officer, who had exercised the command until Ward's arrival. 

Until my special study of the pre-Revolutionary period brought unpleasant disclosures, 
I had always held Joseph Ward as a shining star among the descendants of William 
Ward of Sudbury, ranking him in my esteem as next only to Artemas Ward. But in 
the MSS. of the Earl of Dartmouth I came upon evidence that convicts him of nauseous 
double-dealing: posing as a radical patriot and at the same time offering information so 
obtained (or that he pretended to have obtained) as part of the price of a crown position. 

At the very time that the storm over the Hutchinson-Oliver letters was brewing (page 
48), Joseph Ward was writing to Lord Dartmouth praying for the position of Secretary or 
Lieutenant-Governor of New Hampshire — or "any other commission in civil government 




HASTINGS' HOUSE 

(THE "HOLTVIES 

HOUSE') 

Headquarters of Gen 
eral Ward and the 
Committee of Safet\ 
during the first months 
of the siege of Boston 

See foot-note i on page 
90 (opposite) 



From Justin Winsor's Memorial History of Boston, III, 108 



17751 THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 91 

The General Ward who took his place at the head of the 
council table was a man of medium height; clean shaven, of 
prominent features; too stout for his forty-seven years^ and 
at the moment showing the effects of his recent illness, but 
well enough nevertheless to apply himself conscientiously to 
the duties to his hand. Dressed in the manner of the times — 
hair in a powdered wig; a long coat with silver buttons; a fig- 
ured neckcloth surmounting a ruffled shirt; a long waistcoat 
with big pockets; knee-breeches, and riding-boots. A "God- 
fearing" man, strongly believing in and living up to the re- 
ligion he professed; quiet, thoughtful, and rather over-stern 
in demeanor; somewhat slow in speech and with a biblical 
turn to his conversation; inflexible in his ideas, and fully con- 
vinced that the Massachusetts Bay Colony was the land most 
approved by Providence, and that those of Massachusetts 
were the Chosen People. 

It is a pity that Joseph Ward did not record the full pro- 
ceedings of that council of war, but even if he had, it would 
probably have made most matter-of-fact reading. There 
was no time that afternoon for sentiment or rhetoric; nor to 

in New England." He asserted that his "connections and acquaintance with the people 
in several Provinces" gave him "an opportunity of knowing all the measures which 
are pursuing to secure their independency." He declared that the colonists were only 
awaiting a favorable opportunity to break away ; and he gave detail after detail of 
alleged patriotic plans, "as I apprehend it is uncertain whether your Lordship will be 
informed of some of those things in any other channel." He did not neglect to ask 
secrecy concerning his communications, as they "might give offence to my countrymen 
if known." — Original letters: December 3, 1772; January 6, 1773; February 18, 1773; 
March 20, 1773; May 8, 1773: MSS. of the Earl of Dartmouth. 

It required a good deal of mental effort to resist the temptation to suppress this 
disclosure ; but to have yielded would have been unfair to students, who are entitled to 
the whole truth from writers who present the results of historical research. It would 
also have been unjust to the memory of the true patriots of the Revolution to have 
longer permitted Joseph Ward's name to be classed with theirs. 

It is comforting to be able to conclude this distasteful foot-note with the statement 
that, to the best of my knowledge and belief, Joseph Ward "played the game straight" 
after the actual outbreak of hostilities. He acquitted himself well as secretary to General 
Ward ; and, later, as Commissary of Musters, he won Washington's commendation. It 
was his post as Commissary of Musters which gave him the rank of colonel. 

' It has been asserted that Ward was "unable to get on horseback," that he was "so 
infirm that he was not fit to appear in public on horseback," etc. This is incorrect and 
misleading. When several years older he readily traveled the several hundred miles 
to and from Philadelphia on horseback, the detailed record of his journey to the (then) 
national capital showing that he could make nearly as good time on the road as Wash- 
ington himself. 



92 ARTEMAS WARD lAge 47 

discuss high military or political topics. Instead, the im- 
perative essentials were to place, house, and feed the army 
that had suddenly sprung into being, and was being further 
swelled by men marching in from the western counties, and 
from Connecticut and New Hampshire, and, later, from 
Rhode Island. 

The Massachusetts militiamen had driven the enemy back 
into Boston. They had caged the lion, but could they hold 
him prisoner? 

That first day — and the next few following — were full of 
feverish activity and grave anxiety. Guards were posted and 
earthworks hastily thrown up to bar the roads leading 
north, west, and south from Boston, and to protect the central 
position at Cambridge. And messages were sent widespread 
for gunpowder, for supplies — for all the paraphernalia of 
war. 

The greatest anxiety was felt concerning the American 
right — at Roxbury, south of Boston Neck. 

General Thomas had taken stand in Roxbury, throwing a 
hastily gathered division across the route by which the enemy 
was most likely to try to force his way out. On the second 
day Ward ordered General Heath to reinforce him with the 
Prescott, Learned, and Warner regiments, but Thomas called 
for yet more men, and on the twenty-second David Green's 
regiment also joined him. 

On the same day the American lines were extended on the 
north to Chelsea. 

The militiamen thus completed a girdle of Boston har- 
bor — stretching in a semicircle of twelve miles across and 
around hills and valleys, rivers and marsh. 

Within its arc were the three peninsulas which controlled 
the thoughts and strategy of the siege. The center peninsula 
was Boston; with the Charlestown peninsula to the north, 
and Dorchester Neck (as the Dorchester peninsula was then 
called) to the south. The Charlestown and Dorchester pe- 
ninsulas dominated Boston, and both lay open as prizes of 




BOSTON AND ITS ENVIRONS IN 1775 

Note the three peninsulas — Charlestown, Boston, and Dorchester Neck. 
They constituted the strategic heart of the siege of Boston. 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 93 

war for whichever contestant should first feel himself able 
to seize them and prove himself able to retain them. 

An admirable choice were the positions that the besiegers 
so quickly toolc. Despite the meager American equipment — 
the old-fashioned musket^ and the scant artillery — and the 
lack of discipline, that first cordon was never broken. 

There quickly arose, though, need for decisive action by 
the provisional government. The siege had been clapped on 
with dramatic force and suddenness by the militiamen them- 
selves. The task of maintaining it passed to the provincial 
leaders — particularly the leaders of Massachusetts, for on 
that province rested the chief burden and responsibility. 

Both by law and tradition It had become the duty of the 
Massachusetts militia to turn out on an alarm — to the last 
man If need be — and to march at a moment's notice to 
"repel," "pursue," and "destroy" whatever enemy had put 
the province — or the township — in peril. But neither law 
nor tradition expected the militia, as such, to keep the field. 
To conduct a campaign, men were drawn (by voluntary en- 
listment or by impressment) from Its local ranks in their 
home towns (so and so many from each township or com- 
pany) and reassembled in special regiments and brigades. 

The Committee of Safety saw the opportunity to form an 
army on the spot, in place of this customary but slower meth- 
od of gathering quotas from townships scattered all over the 
province, and on the second day (April 21) It resolved to 
enlist 8000 men from those around them — but a large part 
of the besieging force melted away before the resolve was 
translated into action. 

The men, having answered the alarm and pursued the 
enemy as far as pursuit had been deemed feasible by their 
officers, felt no obligation to remain any longer than their 
own and their companions' estimates of the necessities of the 

* The musket was generally the personal property of the man who carried it, but 
sometimes it was a "Province" or "King's" arm, furnished by his town selectmen or 
local military committee, or one lent by a neighbor or "forcibly taken from a Tory." 



94 ARTEMAS WARD V^ge 47 

situation; or than suited their own needs, or desires, or 
conscience. As the entire force was a body of their own 
building and officering, and they had come out on their own 
initiative, they felt that, instead of awaiting permission to 
return to their homes, they could stay or go according to their 
own volition. 

They had dropped everything on the alarm, many of them 
marching in the clothes they had been wearing in the fields, 
and without a farthing in their pockets. After a few hours 
in camp they began to think of their unfinished work, their 
untilled fields; and many of them decided to go home — for a 
while at all events. Each one reasoned that there was no 
imperative necessity to remain, for the redcoats displayed no 
indication of coming out; — and that, anyway, there were 
plenty of his fellows who would stay! The especially con- 
scientious private arranged with some one else — generally a 
relative or townsman — to take his place before he left camp, 
but a great deal more frequently this precaution was over- 
looked. 

The same thoughts and impulses affected the Connecticut 
troops. 

Ward was the central figure of command, but until the 
Provincial Congress or the Committee of Safety should act, 
he was without authority to enlist the men around him, or to 
pay them, or to hold them in any way. 

On the fourth day (April 23) he wrote to the Provincial 
Congress imploring immediate action. 

"My situation is such," he declared, "that if I have not 
enlisting orders immediately, I shall be left all alone. It is 
impossible to keep the men here, excepting something be 
done. I therefore pray that the plan may be completed and 
handed to me this morning, that you, gentlemen of the Con- 
gress, issue orders for enlisting men."'' 

° I have not come across the original of this letter, but William Lincoln stated that it 
was in existence at the time (1838) of the publication of the Journals of each Provincial 
Congress of Massachtisctts, and that it was dated April 23, 1775. American Archives, 
4th, II, 384, gives the date as April 24, 1775. The minutes of the Provincial Congress 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 95 

Thus prompted, the Congress declared for the raising of 
an army of 13,600 (instead of the Committee of Safety's 
8000) and shortly followed its resolution by issuing "beating 
orders" — authority to whom issued to enlist men; commis- 
sions in the new army being contingent on success in obtain- 
ing the required totals. In order to retain in field service as 
large a proportion as possible of the officers who had come 
to the siege, the company size was reduced to fifty-nine men, 
including officers, and a regiment was limited to ten such 
companies. Enlistments were to the end of the year. 

The "beating" system was hallowed by custom, but it did 
not fit the emergency. Its greatest defect was that the men 
enrolled did not, under the conditions of the siege, except by 
their own voluntary action, become reliable effective mem- 
bers of the army until the completion of their companies — or 
regiments — and their "mustering in" (inspection and swear- 
ing in by specially appointed officers known as "muster 
masters"), which meant, in many cases, a delay of several 
weeks. 

Under its circumstances the rank and file continued to per- 
plex the general officers with frequent unheralded changes 
both in strength and personnel. The passing of day after 
day with no new formation definitely evolved and the old 
formation in a constant state of flux, the conflicting rumors 
of what both they and the enemy were doing and were about 
to do: these things not only accentuated the natural restless- 
ness of the young single men — they also left undiminished the 
homeward pull of farm and family felt by the large number 
of married men in the ranks. Patriotism of the highest order 
had brought them to the siege ready for a life-and-death con- 
flict. They were not in camp for the "glory" of war or pride 
of regiment, but solely to fight for the defense of what they 
considered their rights, and against the violation of their 

apparently confirm the Lincoln date, and suggest that this letter, instead of one concern- 
ing the New Hampshire troops, should have been cited in the sentence preceding the 
resolution for an army of 30,000 men. See Journals of each Provincial Congress, 148, 
April 23, and note. 



96 ARTEMAS WARD i^ge 47 

homes and the country they had developed. To be ready to 
give their Hves for their homes, and at the same time to 
neglect those homes entirely in the busy farming season, 
would have seemed foolish to the logical New England mind 
• — hence the tendency of the Massachusetts militiamen, with 
or without permission, to return to their families at any 
moment's impulse to attend to some farm work — or because 
of the sickness of wife or child. 

The problem was intensified by the competition between 
officers with beating orders, and their excessive deference to 
their men's demands. An officer who was strict might find it 
Impossible to fill his beating order and would thus lose his 
eligibility for a commission. 

It Is nevertheless a serious mistake to presume, as many 
have done, that the lack of military discipline and the preva- 
lence of informal furloughs signified also an army of lethargy 
or idleness. Those first two months in the American camps 
were filled with much earnest labor by men and officers alike. 
"The Army Is employed thus," wrote a private in the Cam- 
bridge lines, "a large number is upon guard night and day; 
another party Is upon fatigue, or labour, & ye rest perform 
Duty on the Common from 10 o'clock to 12 o'clock & from 
4 o'clock to Sunsett."® 

There is some woeful contemporary testimony to the pro- 
fanity of the camp talk — but a certain quantity of rough 
language is to be expected wherever men assemble In the 
absence of their womenfolk. There was, withal, a strongly 
religious atmosphere — the troops attended daily prayers and 
joined fervently in the singing of psalms. A high code of 
morality was enforced. A "bad woman" received short 
shrift: sometimes being "doused" In the river and then 
"drummed out of town." 

Blended with the camp profanity, mosaicking it with pecu- 
liar effect, were the many scriptural phrases current in daily 
speech — the result of much Bible reading and discussion. 

' Original diary of Joseph Meriam, Chamberlain Collection, Boston Public Library. 



177 S\ THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 97 

Scriptural language lent weight also to the invectives which 
the Americans let loose upon the heads of their enemies. 
Biological, social, and political epithets such as dogs, lobsters, 
butchers, cannibals, unnatural enemies, parliamentary tools, 
etc., had their uses, but they did not convey the weight and 
relish of such phrases as "red-coated Philistines," "uncir- 
cumclsed heathen," etc. One private always referred to 
General Gage as that "Crocodile and Second Pharoe," and 
there are many diary entries which bear testimony to the 
prevailing sentiment that the "God of Israel" was on the 
American side. 

We have, further, been told that the New Englanders thus 
gathered together were most distressingly careless of their 
personal appearance and that they apparently used little soap 
— in other words, that they were disgracefully dirty! It 
would have been strange If it had been otherwise. Several 
thousand men so closely crowded that they filled every house 
and every barn to overflowing, covering every Inch of floor 
space as they slept at night — after digging trenches, throw- 
ing up earthworks, and doing all manner of camp chores by 
day. No running water or bathtubs In the houses in which 
they were quartered (private bathtubs were unknown then 
and for many years to come), and still fewer facilities for 
cleanliness in their other improvised shelters : In motley boat- 
sail tents and hastily constructed huts of boards or stone or 
turf: or as they bivouacked without any protection at all. 
They would have been the most particular of men If — again 
in the absence of their womenfolk — they had paid much at- 
tention to their personal appearance.'^ 

The post of general officer in this army presented many 
peculiar problems — superimposed on days unceasingly 
crowded by consideration of military plans and dangers. 
Casual contemporary references show Ward one day at Rox- 
bury; on another reconnoitering Lechmere's Point; again, 

'' In many cases the men were not to blame. Soap was not always readily obtainable. 
Lieutenant-Colonel Storrs writes in his diary (June 9) : "My company uneasy for want 
of beer, and soap for washing." — Massachusetts Historical Society Proceedings, XIV, 85. 



98 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 47 

reconnoiterlng Dorchester Neck; and, next, riding over the 
Charlestown peninsula. He was fortunate in having the 
energetic cooperation of a number of able officers — chief in 
authority among them during the first weeks being General 
Thomas of the Massachusetts forces, the Connecticut Gen- 
erals Putnam and Spencer, and Colonel Stark of New Hamp- 
shire — and also the valuable assistance of Joseph War- 
ren, whose popularity gave him great influence among the 
troops; but lack of experience and precedents, and of quali- 
fied assistants, added greatly to the labors of every command- 
ing officer, and it does not surprise one to read Jedediah 
Huntington's statement that both Ward and Putnam had 
"too much business on their hands. "^ 

And there was lack of gunpowder, bayonets, horses, cook- 
ing utensils, and clothing; of everything except courage and 
food — the only two products of which Massachusetts at that 
time had any surplus. 

Ward's insistent demands for much-needed equipment and 
materials were on at least one occasion hotly resented by the 
Committee of Supplies. In a letter to the Provincial Con- 
gress they complained of his impatience at the delay in 
supplying him with muskets and planking. They declared 
that they should "expect an explanation" from the general 
when the affairs of the colony were "a little settled."'* 

Of food, happily, there was plenty for all. Fresh meat 
was bountifully provided by the cattle in the vicinity or raided 
from the islands in the harbor; and every day, big carts rolled 
in from the neighboring towns laden with farm produce. 
There was no thought of the semi-starvation from which the 
Continentals later suffered in the lukewarm central provinces. 

Reserve stocks were quickly reported to headquarters. 

"I am Informed that there are not less than 5 or 6 hundred 
bushels of peas at Newburyport," Ward writes, for example, 
to the Committee of Supplies. He wishes that they may be 

* Massachusetts Historical Society Collections, 5th, IX, 495. 
'Lincoln, Journals of each Provincial Congress, 557. 



lyysl THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 99 

obtained for the soldiers. He also calls for all the "vine- 
gar that it is possible for us to have." "Vinegar," he 
adds, "is a most important article," He had evidently not 
forgotten his classics and their references to the posca of the 
ancient Romans — the vinegar and water that served as the 
standard beverage of Caesar's legions. 

In the midst of all the other demands on his attention, 
Ward found time to ensure proper treatment of the English 
prisoners of war. Shortly after the battle of April 19 he sent 
word into Boston that the "wounded were taken every pos- 
sible care of; that they were attended by the most skillful sur- 
geons," but that "if General Gage chose to have any surgeons 
of his own appointment to attend them, he was at liberty to 
nominate them, and they should be permitted to give their 
attendance. "^^ He also issued a general order in which he 
commanded that the "officers of the guards who have the 
care of the prisoners take the best care of them, and treat 
them in the kindest manner, and procure good surgeons to 
take care of the wounded." ^^ Supplementing this, he wrote 
to Colonel Barrett in Concord, to which town some of the 
prisoners had been moved, "Pray keep them from any In- 
fection that may arise from putting too many in one room 

" In an article by a London writer reprinted in American Archives, 4th, II, 950. 

^^ Ward's Order Book, April 21, 1775. The original Order Book, April 20, 1775— 
March 20, 1777, is (1921) owned by Mrs. A. Ward Lamson, Dedham, Mass. It is a 
tome of 350 pages, 8x12^ inches, originally parchment-bound. It is chiefly in the hand- 
writing of Joseph Ward, but some entries are by aides-de-camp Samuel Osgood and Peleg 
Wadsworth, and a few are by General Ward himself. Photostat copies are in the 
Artemas Ward House, Shrewsbury, Mass., and the Artemas Ward MSS. A manuscript 
copy of all of the "Cambridge Orders" (April 20, 1775, to April 3, 1776), and of the 
"Roxbury Orders" from July 29 to October 20, 1775, is in the Adjutant-General's Office, 
Boston. 

"Fenno's Orderly Book" (MS., two small books, April 20, 1775, to September 6, 1775. 
— Massachusetts Historical Society) has been freely quoted in the belief that it was 
kept by John Fenno, and that John Fenno was Ward's secretary, but neither of these 
points is correct — it was not kept by Fenno, and Fenno was not Ward's secretary. It 
is a copy (with some changes and additions) made by Joseph Ward of part of the original 
Order Book described above. It presumably owes its title of "Fenno's Orderly Book" 
to the pencil memorandum, "Kept by John Fenno, Secretary to the Commander-in-chief," 
which appears on the inside of the front cover of the first volume. This incorrect state- 
ment is of later addition and is not in the handwriting of either Joseph Ward or John 
Fenno. 



loo ARTEMAS WARD [.Age 47 

. . . provide every thing needful for their comfortable sub- 
sistence."^^ 

Reports of this reaching England did much to offset the 
untrue and highly colored tales of American atrocities on 
April 19. The London writer chronicling Ward's attitude, 
added, "The public will hardly believe that so fair and gen- 
erous an enemy could be guilty of barbarity and cruelty." 

Ward's indignation was, however, roused by Gage's vio- 
lation of the agreement governing the exodus of the Bos- 
ton patriots, and his council of war recommended that the 
reciprocal resolution of the Provincial Congress be sus- 
pended "until they are fully satisfied that the agreement is 
punctually fulfilled, and in the meantime to arrest and in- 
tern all Crown officers and known enemies to the liberties of 
the colonies." ^^ 

There were, too, rifts in the quick strong loyalty which 
had overnight beleaguered Boston, We find letters to Ward 
and the Committee of Safety from outlying towns telling of 

"April 26, 1775. — Original letter, Massachusetts Archives, CXCIII, 70. 

"May 12, 1775. — Original resolution, Massachusetts Archives, CXXXVIII, 48. 

Gage had promised that any of the inhabitants of Boston who deposited their arms 
in Faneuil Hall should receive permission to leave the town and take with them their 
families and effects. But the number applying for passes was so large that the tories of 
the capital became alarmed and so far prevailed upon Gage that he threw many obstacles 
in the path of the exodus — resulting in much additional hardship and sometimes in the 
separation of families. 

Many of those who were permitted to come out were entirely destitute, the abnormal 
conditions after the closing of the port having exhausted their meager resources. 

The Provincial Congress took these poor people under its protection and allotted them 
to different towns, requiring the towns to provide for them — the province later to foot 
the bills. 

The Congress added a resolution that the "inhabitants of Boston thus removed shall not 
in future be considered as the poor" of the towns to which they were allotted. This was 
interpreted even by the well-informed Frothingham {Siege of Boston, 95) as a "delicate" 
resolution to guard the feelings and sentiments of those to be thus publicly assisted and 
supported, and the idea has been adopted by lesser writers. 

The resolution had, however, nothing whatever to do with "delicacy" or sentiment. 
On the contrary: instead of being a protection for the feelings of the refugees, it was 
passed to protect the toivns from being burdened icith them. It supplemented the pre- 
ceding resolution providing for the payment of town expenses in caring for the refugees, 
and it signified that after the special war exigency (thus provided for) had passed, the 
towns should be under no obligation to support them — as they would have been if 
the refugees had been considered as their "poor." It was because of this obligation to 
take care of their own poor that Massachusetts towns were so careful to warn away 
strange would-be residents who, in the opinion of the selectmen, might become a burden ; 
and to put under bonds any resident harboring a stranger. 



lyy^] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON loi 

men believed to be in communication with the English author- 
ities. The vein of anti-patriot sentiment thus disclosed, and 
everywhere interwoven, was sometimes heroic, sometimes 
nauseously venal. Though not suspected until several months 
later, it reached even into the Committee of Safety in the 
person of Benjamin Church, a prominent member and fre- 
quently its chairman. From what date his double-dealing 
extended, no man knows, but he went through the lines into 
Boston and was whispering treachery with the British com- 
mander before the siege was forty-eight hours old. Fortu- 
nately, as six years later in the case of Benedict Arnold, the 
English profited little therefrom. 

The besieging lines were at their leanest during the last 
week of April and the first days of May. Most of the men 
had returned to their homes — some to get additional clothes 
and to arrange farm and family affairs because they had en- 
listed or because they intended to; others, because they had 
decided that camp life was not to their taste. On April 26 
a considerable body of men who had encamped in Watertown 
and Waltham were called into Cambridge and Roxbury, 
but they served only as a temporary stop-gap, for they also 
had begun to melt away. There was a special scarcity of 
officers — they had gone back not only on personal missions 
but also to try to fill their beating orders from among the 
men who had left the camp without signing on. 

On May 8, while the camps were in this dangerously 
weakened condition, Ward received another of a succession 
of warnings that the English were planning the seizure of 
Dorchester Neck, and confirmatory reports apparently left 
little doubt that the enemy was preparing a capital stroke. 

The situation had become desperate. The Provincial Con- 
gress debated a partial retreat from the American position, 
and on the morning of May 10 directed a committee to con- 
fer with the Committee of Safety on moving the whole or 
part of the cannon and stores back into the country. A plan 
much urged was the evacuation of Cambridge and the posts 



I02 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 47 

to the north, retaining only the Brookline and Roxbury posi- 
tions. 

But Ward and his fellow officers at Cambridge viewed 
matters from a more aggressive standpoint. There was no 
symptom of weakening in their council of war. Instead, 
they planned a strong counter-move. They unanimously re- 
solved (May 9) to call in additional militiamen — not only to 
strengthen Roxbury, but also to forestall the enemy by them- 
selves seizing and fortifying the dominating heights of Dor- 
chester Neck: "Dorchester Hill," as the resolution reads; 
"Dorchester Heights," as they are best known to history. 

No narrative of the siege records this episode, for it was 
submerged by the rush of events which followed within the 
next few weeks, but the page opposite bears a facsimile of the 
resolution signed by Samuel Osgood, General Ward's aide- 
de-camp.^^ 

The resolution was immediately followed by a request to 
the Committee of Safety for 2000 men to reinforce Thomas, 
and "that if possible the reinforcements be brought to camp 
the ensuing night." 

The Committee of Safety responded with a resolution or- 
dering the militia officers of the towns of Dorchester, Ded- 
ham, Newton, Watertown, Waltham, Roxbury, Milton, 
Braintree, Brookline, and Needham, immediately to muster 
one half of their standing militiamen and all their minute- 
men, and to march them forthwith to Roxbury. 

The order was, at the direction of the Provincial Con- 
gress, changed on the next day to a call for all the men en- 
listed in the entire province to march to Cambridge, and the 
following letter was dispatched to recruiting officers through- 
out the country : 

" S. A. Drake happened on the original, or a copy of it, and mentioned it in his His- 
toric Fields and Mansions of Middlesex, 260— 261 (also, same page numbers, in the same 
work later published as Old Landmarks and Historic Fields of Middlesex and Historic 
Mansions and Higliivays around Boston), but it sank out of sight again and for many 
years lay buried in the autograph collection of John Mills Hale. It was released only so 
recently as February 14, 1913, when the Hale Collection was sold by Henkels in Phila- 
delphia. It is now among the Artemas Ward MSS. 







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7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 103 

"In Committee of Safety, Camb., May 10, 1775 
Sir: 

As we are meditating a Blow against our restless Enemies 
— We therefore enjoin you as you would Evidence your Re- 
gard to Your Country, forthwith upon the Receipt of this 
Order to repair to the Town of Cambridge with the Men 
inlisted under your command. 
We are, etc. 

Benja Church, Junr. 

Chairman." 

The letter was intended by the Committee of Safety only 
for officers in outlying towns, but a copy, both written and 
signed by Benjamin Church himself, was sent to Thomas. ^^ 
This may have been merely a blunder — the possibility Is sug- 
gested by the superscription "To General Thomas of 
Plymouth" — but whether or not, and despite its address, the 
letter was promptly delivered to Thomas at Roxbury. 

Thomas did not take the letter as unintentional. He read 
it as a direct order intended for his compliance. He was, 
however, too alert to withdraw his men from the post en- 
trusted to him, even at the command of the head of the 
Committee of Safety, without special confirmation of the 
order. He could not complain to Ward, for the Commit- 
tee of Safety was superior to all military officers. The only 
higher authority than Church, as the head of the Com- 
mittee of Safety, was the Provincial Congress itself. So, 
refusing meanwhile to move his men, he immediately sent a 
message of inquiry to Joseph Warren as President of the 
Congress. 

Warren's answer was prompt and decisive: 

"I have this moment received your letter, the Contents 
very much surprised me, as I had been absent from the Com- 
mittee of Safety all Day I could not at first understand the 

"Original letter, Emmet Collection, New York Public Library. 



I04 ARTEMAS WARD \.Age47 

matter, but upon Enquiry I find the Committee gave Orders 
that all recruiting Officers should repair to Cambridge with 
the Men they had enlisted, but the sending the Order to your 
Camp was certainly a very great Error, as it was designed 
only for those Officers who are in the Country, absent 
from Camp. 

"Your readiness to obey Orders does you great Honor, and 
your prudence in sending to Head Quarters upon receiving so 
extraordinary an Order convinces me of your Judgment." 

If Warren, who "had not the greatest affection for" 
Church,^^ had lived to see him arrested for maintaining an 
illicit correspondence with the enemy, he might have better 
understood the "very great error" of "so extraordinary an 
order." 1^ 

It does not require much imagination to discern the great 
danger in which the American forces would have been placed 
if Thomas had obeyed the Committee of Safety order. An 
English detachment rushed into Roxbury — the enemy com- 
manding an open road into the country — the American center 
at Cambridge immediately untenable; and no alternative but 
a pitched battle under the most disadvantageous conditions, 
or a hurried — and surely disorganized — retreat. 

Ward's Dorchester Heights project of May 9 was not 
fulfilled, — probably because Thomas decided that the seizure 
of the peninsula was too hazardous a project for his division 
even If reinforced. We have his letter of a few days later 
saying that he "much despaired of defending" Dorchester 
Neck, had he "ever so many men on the spot," unless It could 
be strengthened by "Regular Intrenchments" and furnished 

" Goss, Paul Revere, I, 207. 

" This incident is found in no other account. The three individuals most closely as- 
sociated with it had been long dead when the first American history of the Revolution 
was written. Warren and Thomas had laid down their lives for their country — Warren 
at Bunker Hill, Thomas a year later in Canada; and the proscribed Church had lost his 
life at sea. The letters which illustrated it lay buried in England for many years — 
until the auction of the collection of the Reverend Thomas Raffles of Liverpool, England, 
at Libbie's, Boston, February 3-5, 1892 — and modern writers have overlooked them 
since their recovery. 



ij75\ THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 105 

with cannon and "persons to take the proper direction of 
them" to offset the land and sea batteries that the English 
could bring into action. ^^ 

Nor did Gage make his expected move. Instead, he held 
his troops within his lines, and American conditions took an 
upward turn as militiamen in considerable numbers came into 
both the Cambridge and Roxbury camps. 

The attention of the American commanders turned next to 
their left. A joint committee appointed by the council of 
war and the Committee of Safety "for the purpose of recon- 
nolterlng the highlands in Cambridge and Charlestown," ad- 
vised, May 12, the raising of breastworks near Prospect Hill 
on both the north and south sides of the road from Cam- 
bridge to Charlestown (the north breastwork to be on the 
side of Prospect Hill) ; and redoubts on Winter Hill (in 
place of the guard-house standing there) and Bunker Hill, 
the latter being the highest point of the Charlestown penin- 
sula. The report concluded with the statement that "when 
these are finished, we apprehend that the country will be safe 
from all sallies of the enemy in that quarter." 

The committee's recommendations resulted in a breast- 
work being thrown up near the base of Prospect Hill to 
guard the Cambridge-Charlestown road, but the Winter Hill 
and Bunker Hill plans were temporarily set aside. 

"On the most Important measure, that of occupying Bunker 
Hill, there was much difference of opinion. General Putnam, 
Colonel Prescott, and other veteran officers, were strongly in 
favor of It, and chiefly to draw the enemy out of Boston on 
ground where he might be met on equal terms. . , . Gen- 
erals Ward and Warren were among those who opposed 
it, and chiefly because the army was not in a condition, as 
respected cannon and powder, to maintain so exposed a post; 
and because it might bring on a general engagement, which 
it was neither politic nor safe to risk. It was determined to 

"To the Honorable Gen. Ward, May i8, 1775. — Thomas Papers, 1774-1776, 29, 
Massachusetts Historical Society. 



io6 ARTEMAS WARD \.Age47 

take possession of Bunker Hill, and also of Dorchester 
Heights, but not until the army should be better organized, 
more abundantly supplied with powder, and better able to 
defend posts so exposed." ^^ 

Ward and his council planned also the equipment of 
a fleet of "batteaux" and whale-boats ^"^ in Charles River and 
other waters of the vicinity^^ and made various attempts to 
burn the English shiping by means of blazing "fire-boats." 

And still an army held together largely by moral suasion ! 
A full month after the outbreak of hostilities, and not an 
officer commissioned, nor a man mustered. 

A variety of circumstances had delayed the filling of the 
regiments. Very mischievous in effect had been the action of 
the Committee of Safety (possessed by its initial fears that 
enlistments would fall short) in giving out more beating or- 
ders than were needed to enlist the number of men authorized 
by the Provincial Congress; and in giving them out somewhat 
indiscriminately. Many orders were only partly filled, and 
some were out on which the committee had no information 
whatever. The men estimated to have enrolled fell consid- 
erably short of the 13,600 desired, yet the number of orders 
in circulation made the committee afraid to give enlisting 
authority even to enterprising officers with men ready to sign 
with them. This not only left such officers outside the army 
establishment, but also their men, unless they chose, as gen- 
erally they did not, to enlist under strange officers. One en- 
tire regiment was thus affected because its colonel had not 
applied for beating orders with sufficient promptness. ^^ On 

" Frothingham, Siege of Boston, ii6. 

^ There is little whale-fishing now done from the shores of New England, but in 
those days it was still an important industry. Whale-boats served the Americans as war 
vessels in their harbor forays and figured as transports in plans for storming Boston. 
And when spears were called for, it was noted that they could "easily be obtained from 
the whalemen in the vicinity." — Massachusetts Archives, CXCIII, 396. 

^^ Committee of Safety resolution, May 10. — Lincoln, Journals of each Provincial 
Congress. 

'^ This was Colonel Woodbridge, who had "been in the camp with his minute-men 
doing duty ever since the battle [of April 19], but did not apply to this committee for 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 107 

the other hand, some officers had indulged in sharp practice 
— deliberate fraud was charged In one flagrant case — to 
obtain them. 

The situation was rendered the more unsatisfactory be- 
cause no action of any kind had been taken even on orders 
which had been completed. The army hung between heaven 
and earth — the men feeling themselves only provisionally 
enrolled and the officers not yet sure of their rank. 

This condition could not continue Indefinitely and Ward 
again wrote to the Provincial Congress, calling most em- 
phatically for attention: asserting it to be "absolutely neces- 
sary that the regiments be immediately settled, the officers 
commissioned, the soldiers mustered and paid, agreeable to 
what has been proposed by the Congress — if we would save 
our country." ^^ His letter, addressed to Joseph Warren, Is 
reproduced opposite page 108. 

The Congress responded by deputing James Warren to 
wait "on the Committee of Safety for a List of such colonels 
and other Officers as they shall report to be prepared for re- 
ceiving their Commissions." 

The immediate result was meager — only two regiments be- 
ing reported as "full" and recommended for commissions. 
Next day, one more was certified as "full"; and a fourth a 
few days later as "nearly full." But Ward's protests were 
bearing fruit, and Friday, May 26, brought a new list of 
eleven "full," or "nearly full," or in "good forwardness." 

Additional delay had arisen from disputes over field- 
officers' commissions. In Ward's own regiment were two 
aspirants for the post of lieutenant-colonel: Joseph Hen- 
shaw, who had marched to Cambridge as head of the minute- 
men battalion; and Jonathan Ward, who had brought down 

enlisting orders, until the committee had issued orders sufficient to complete the army, 
and therefore the committee did not give him orders, but promised they would recommend 
him if there should be a vacancy." — Committee of Safety, June lo (Lincoln, Journals of 
each Provincial Congress). 

^ \n the American Archives copy of this letter, 4th, II, 647, May 19, 177S, the word 
"numbered" should be corrected to read "mustered." 



io8 ARTEMAS WARD ^Age 47 

the remainder of the regiment. The same circumstances had 
bred similar claims and disputes in other regiments. ^^ 

The privates, too, were quick to resent any arrangement 
which did not suit them — nor were they always careful in 
the language used concerning officers. For example, twenty- 
seven privates petitioned Ward against being shifted from 
one regiment to another. "We . . . beg that your Ex- 
cellency ^^ would be pleased to continue us in the regiment we 
engaged to serve in, and not to be removed for the future 
only to serve the malevolent disposition of our Captain." 

Meanwhile, on the afternoon of May 20, the Provincial 
Congress had resolved "that the president be desired to de- 
liver to General Ward the commissions^ prepared for him as 
general and commander-in-chief of the Massachusetts 
forces." 

Thus Ward formally received his commission, Samuel 
Dexter of Dedham having first "administered the oath" to 
him. 

The nominal strength of the Grand American Army, as 
the newspapers styled it, was at this period about 16,000 men. 
Of those from beyond the borders of Massachusetts, only 
the New Hampshire troops came under Ward's direct au- 
thority, but the Connecticut and Rhode Island forces also 
paid him a voluntary obedience. 

But now a new and ugly danger had raised its head. 

There had been no constitutional government in Mas- 
sachusetts for nearly a year, and during this Interim, and 

^ James Warren blamed much of the Provincial Congress embarrassment in officering 
the army on the establishment of minute-men and declared he wished "it had never taken 
place." — May 7, 1775, to John Adams, TFarren-Adams Letters, I, 47. 

'" Ward, while in command at the siege, was variously addressed and referred 
to as: Your Excellency, His Excellency General Ward, Honorable General JFard, General 
Ward, Honorable Artcmas Ward, Esq., The General Officer of the Army of This Col- 
ony, The Commanding Officer of the Colony Forces, and Captain-General. The last 
title was the official military designation of the royal governors of Massachusetts. 

'"'The preparation of General Ward's commission had been entrusted. May 17, to a 
committee consisting of Colonel Jedediah Foster of Brookfield, James Sullivan of Biddeford 
(Maine), and Captain Michael Farley of Ipswich. Amory's Life of James Sullivan, I, 
381, says that the actual work was done by James Sullivan. 




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From the original (12^ x 1Sj4), owned by the Massachusetts Historical Society 

WARD'S COMMISSION AS COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE 
MASSACHUSETTS FORCES 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 109 

for some years preceding, the most influential brains of the 
province had emphasized and enlarged upon the rights of 
the people, and by their reasoning and protests had highly 
sharpened the Massachusetts wit and appetite for political 
controversy and individual independence which had been bred 
by generations of town-meetings. 

The result suddenly assumed an alarming aspect. The 
militiamen encamped in their thousands around Boston 
found many topics to debate and to discuss, and soon — free 
of the restraining influences of their home towns — they ex- 
perienced no difliculty in proving to themselves and to each 
other that they need obey only what and whom they pleased 
— for was it not true that there was no longer any law or 
court or government in Massachusetts? 

What was this Provincial Congress, and by what author- 
ity did it or its committees or its appointees presume to dic- 
tate? True, the delegates, many of them, had been elected 
in the ordinary manner, but they constituted nevertheless only 
an irregular assembly which had no place in the charter of 
the province. The Provincial Congress could recommend, 
and it could appoint committees and they could recommend; 
but on what did it, or they, base their right to order? 

They, the soldiers, knew their duty to their country and 
were ready to do it — but they did not intend to submit to 
anybody's arbitrary regulations, nor to be censured or pun- 
ished for violations of rules to which they had not agreed 
and which nobody else had a right to make I 

The variations on the topic were manifold and continuous, 
and the discussions developed a spirit of active violence that 
threatened to demolish the already attenuated social fabric. 

A comfortable measure of prosperity had been widespread 
throughout the province, — in no part of the world had there 
been less want, — but inequalities of condition inevitably 
showed themselves In every township, and, as in all lands 
and in all ages, there were in every company the discon- 
tented, the envious, the shiftless, and those of incendiary 



no ARTE MAS WARD iAge 47 

heart. Such men now had a clear field for argument, and 
they speedily corrupted a large part of the army, the virus 
, infecting each new corps that came in and spreading far and 
wide throughout the country as the men went back and forth. 
The abnormal conditions everywhere besetting, the strange 
new era into which the colonies had suddenly plunged, and 
the recourse to arms and bloodshed to resist old and long 
established authority — these things raised new thoughts and 
questions of other rights and wrongs: of the respective merits 
of law and force, and of existing tenures of property and 
the distribution of property: that for a time swept hundreds 
of normally steady-going men perilously close to the vortex. 
Spread before them were all the possessions of the prov- 
ince, save only those under the protection of the redcoats in 
Boston: all of the bigger and more prosperous farms which 
dwarfed their own possessions; all the material wealth in 
every form that Massachusetts had developed in a hundred 
and fifty years: and between this wealth and them, no barrier 
but a very shadow of a government. ^''^ 

^ May 4, by the Committee of Safety (Lincoln, Journals of each Provincial Congress) '. 

"Resolved, . . . that the public good of this colony requires that govern- 
ment in full form ought to be taken up immediately." 
May 16, the Provincial Congress to the Continental Congress: 

"We tremble at having an army, although consisting of our own countrymen, 
established here, without a civil power to provide for and control it." 
May 26, Joseph Warren to Samuel Adams: 

"I see more & more the Necessity of establishing a civil Government here and 
such a Government as shall be sufficient to control the military Forces, not only of 
this Colony, but also Such as Shall be sent to us from the other Colonies. The 
Continent must Strengthen & support with all it's Weight the civil Authority here, 
otherwise our Soldiery will lose the Ideas of right & wrong, and will plunder instead 
of protecting, the Inhabitants. This is but too evident already ; & I assure you 
inter nos, that unless some Authority Sufficient to restrain the Irregularities of this 
Army, is established, we Shall very soon find ourselves involved in greater Diffi- 
culties than you can well imagine. . . . Aly great Wish therefore is that wc 
may restrain everything which tends to weaken the Principles of Right & Wrong, 
more especially with regard to property. ... I hope Care will be taken by 
the Continental Congress to apply an immediate Remedy, as the Infection is caught 
by every new Core that arrives . . . For the Honor of my Country, I wish 
the Disease may be cured before it is known [to the public] to exist." — Original let- 
ter, Samuel Adams Papers, New York Public Library; a copy, edited to modern 
capitalization, spelling, etc., is in Frothingham's Joseph Warren, 495-496. 

May 2^, in the Provincial Congress — reported by the committee appointed to bring 
in a resolve for the regular administration of justice: 

"Whereas, it appears to this Congress, that a want of a due and regular execution 



1^7 si THE SIEGE OF BOSTON m 

It was the good fortune of Massachusetts (and of the 
Revolution) that the chief command of this restless, seething 
army was in the hands of a man whom the troops esteemed 
and respected. Had Ward held less of their respect and 
affection, the much discussed "disorder" might have become 
disaster. 

It had been the sound judgment of the provincial dele- 
gates which had placed Ward above all of the general offi- 
cers except Preble. His attributes had not included seniority 
— for he was the youngest of the general officers who had 
seen service; but neither was he appointed because of greater 
possible activity — for by that standard Thomas would have 
outranked him. His military record, though not from any 
personal fault, was less brilliant than that of Pomeroy, or 
Thomas, or Whitcomb. And he had neither wealth nor 
high position to enhance his standing. But he had been 
tested and tried in the political storms of many years, and 
he stood as a recognized champion of the patriot cause and, 
as such, an inspiring commander for the patriot army. 

He was not a "regular general," nor blessed with a great 
political following, but for a full twenty-four years he had 
been in the closest contact with the typical Massachusetts 
life: meeting his home neighbors and those of greater dis- 
tance throughout Worcester County as justice of the peace 
and judge of the Court of Common Pleas; as selectman 
and church moderator, as representative and councilor, and 
as militia officer — and he thoroughly understood the men 
and their manner of thought. The molding of his character 

of justice in this colony, has encouraged divers wicked and disorderly persons, not 
only to commit outrages and trespasses upon private property and private persons, 
but also to make the most daring attacks upon the constitution, and to unite in their 
endeavors to disturb the peace, and destroy the happiness and security of their coun- 
try: and, whereas, this Congress conceive it to be their indispensable duty to take 
effectual measures to restrain all disorders, and promote the peace and happiness of 
this colony, by the execution of justice in criminal matters: 

"Therefore, Resolved, That a court of inquiry be immediately erected, consisting 
of seven persons, to be chosen by this Congress, whose business it shall be to hear 
all complaints against any person or persons, for treason against the constitution of 
their country, or other breaches of the public peace and security." 



1 1 2 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 47 

and the ripening of his experience during those twenty-four 
years now stood his country in good stead. 

Some there were who thought him over-lenient to of- 
fenders, and that he held the reins too loosely; but when 
the point was raised, both friend and enemy among the 
leaders of Massachusetts realized that to put another in his 
place might overnight destroy the province. It was not pos- 
sible to enforce rigid discipline, and until a regularly consti- 
tuted government could be reestablished there was always 
the danger that the army might get out of hand no matter 
who was in command, but Ward filled his most difficult post 
with so substantial a degree of dexterity that even his most 
bitter detractor — James Warren, of Plymouth — feared the 
result of making a change and, in the following month, tes- 
tified "we dare not superceed him here." A severe or 
arbitrary or unpopular general would have been defied, and 
the defiance might have kindled the flames of armed anarchy. 
An ambitious general might have torn authority from the 
Congress and set up a military standard. Either calamity 
would have alienated the sympathies of the other colonies 
and, rousing and confirming their dormant suspicions of 
Massachusetts, would have destroyed the Revolution in its 
cradle. And either would have brought a grim aftermath 
to the patriots of Massachusetts: with confiscation and hang- 
ings to mark the penalty for unsuccessful rebellion. 

There were other able men in Massachusetts, with more 
military experience and, some of them, with stronger ideas 
of military discipline. But there was none other whom 
Ward's contemporaries dared to trust at the helm while there 
threatened a return to elemental passions. 

Discipline indeed remained lax, and the camp slipshod. 
How could it be otherwise, with men continually coming and 
going, shifting and changing like the sands of the sea? It 
was a loose command, and of a kaleidoscopic army, but 
nevertheless it achieved Its first main purpose — the siege was 
maintained, and the enemy kept within the town. 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 113 

The Provincial Congress pressed the Continental Con-i 
gress for advice on, and continental authority for, the estab- 
lishment of an orthodox form of provincial government. 
Because they feared to make the attempt without it, the 
Massachusetts leaders awaited the sanction or mandate of 
the "Continent," despite the increasing dangers of the politi- 
cal situation. But Joseph Warren warned that if a new civil 
government were not speedily come into, a military govern- 
ment would of necessity evolve — and every Massachusetts 
instinct recoiled at the thought of that possibility.^^ 

The Provincial Congress suggested also the continental 
adoption and general direction of the Revolutionary ar- 
mies. In this it was deemed necessary to move with great 
caution in order to avoid offending the soldiers. It would 

^^ There are many examples of the American revolutionists' determination to preclude 
the possibility of military dictation — -whether by English arms or their own forces. They 
quickly resented anything that savored of encroachment on civil power. 
On June 26 the Provincial Congress had: 

"Resolved, that all the small arms that are or may be procured ... be 
delivered to the Committee of Safety, at Cambridge, they to give their receipts for 
the same to the person from whom they receive them ; that the same be delivered 
out to such officers as shall produce orders therefor from the Hon. General Ward, 
they giving receipts for the same to the said committee of safety, to be returned in 
good order, unless lost in service of the colony." 
On June 28 Ward, acting on this resolution, ordered: 

"that the commanding officer of each regiment make application to the committee 

of safety for so many fire-arms as their respective regiments stand in need of; each 

commanding officer to give his receipt for the fire-arms he may receive, and the 

committee of safety are hereby ordered to deliver out arms to such commanding 

officers as make application to them for the same." 

The words "the committee of safety are hereby ordered" acted like the proverbial 

red rag on the members of the committee, and they immediately forwarded an indignant 

protest to the Provincial Congress. 

They pointed out with much detail that the Provincial Congress resolution did not 
"impower the General to order them to deliver said arms, but only to order his officers 
to receive from this Committee such arms as they are ordered by the honorable Congress 
to deliver on the general's orders to his officers," and they apprehend "that it is of vast 
importance that no orders are issued by the Military or obeyed by the Civil powers, but 
only such as are directed by the honorable representative body of the people, from whom 
all Military & Civil power originates." 

Again, in Braintree, Mass., Abigail Adams records the town's refusal to permit any 
soldier to vote. "Newcomb insisted upon it that no man should vote who was in the 
army. He had no notion of being under the military power; said we might be so situated 
as to have the greater part of the people engaged in the military, and then all power 
would be wrested out of the hands of the civil magistrate. He insisted upon its being 
put to vote, and carried his point immediately." — Letters of Mrs. Adams, I, July 16, 
1775- 



114 ARTEMAS WARD iAge 47 

have been indeed a serious matter if the armed men of the 
New England provinces had challenged the continental au- 
thority as at times they threatened the provincial. Dr. 
Warren wrote Samuel Adams that this was a matter to be 
handled with "much delicacy," as otherwise, despite even the 
weight of the united continental authority behind either a 
committee of war or a new "generalissimo," dangerous dis- 
sensions might arise in the army, for "our soldiers, I find, 
will not be brought to obey any person of whom they do not 
themselves entertain a high opinion." 

Further heightening the perturbation of the American 
leaders throughout that feverish month of May were the 
continued warnings of the British determination to occupy 
Dorchester Neck and to break through the American lines 
at Roxbury. To guard against surprise, Thomas kept out- 
posts near Dorchester Neck by day, and stationed pickets 
upon it at night — facing them toward both Boston and Castle 
WiUiam and supporting them with parts of two regiments 
within easy call. 

The English movements lent color to the reports, for they 
included the fortifying of flat-boats and other vessels to cover 
landing parties, but Gage was not yet ready to try his steel 
again, and the month closed with exultation over the success- 
ful issue of a brush which developed from a raid on Hog and 
Noddle's islands (now Breed's Island and East Boston). 

The raid had several important results — the destruction 
of an enemy schooner mounting sixteen pieces of cannon, the 
bringing of hundreds of sheep into the American camps, and, 
finally, the influencing in (then) far-off Philadelphia the 
continental vote for Putnam as major-general — "Old Put" 
having assumed the command when the affair developed into 
a land and water engagement between the English on their 
vessels and on Noddle's Island, and the Americans on Chelsea 
Neck. Joseph Warren also joined the detachment, serving 
as a volunteer. 

The edible outcome proved so satisfactory to the Ameri- 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 115 

can commissary that night visits to Pettlck's (Peddock's) 
and Deer islands quickly followed and with almost equally 
profitable returns. 

Other minor encounters, preceding and following, also 
served to keep both sides on the alert. 

But always, incessantly, increasingly imperative was the 
need for gunpowder. Letter after letter by Ward calls for 
it. Especially impressive in its extreme earnestness and 
courageous confidence is the address to the Continental Con- 
gress that he signed on June 4, together with Joseph Warren 
(as chairman of the Committee of Safety) and Moses Gill 
(chairman of the Committee of Supplies). They convinc- 
ingly set forth the danger to which the province is exposed 
by the scarcity of ammunition, but they dwell on the bravery 
of the New England troops, "whom we think we can without 
boasting declare are ready to encounter every danger for 
the preservation of the Rights and Liberties of America." 
They ask only for "arms and ammunition" — feeling that thus 
supplied, even if otherwise unassisted, they may "with the 
Common blessing of Providence baffle the designs of the 
enemy and be greatly instrumental in bringing our present 
dispute to a happy issue." 

Two days later, American attention was again directed to 
Dorchester Neck, and Generals Ward, Thomas, Spencer, and 
Heath, with a number of other officers, surveyed the heights 
with a view to their occupation. The English "fired three 
times at them with their Cannon, but did no harm."^^ But 
again the project was deemed too hazardous. 

Looking next toward the north. Ward on June 12 moved 
Reed's New Hampshire regiment close in to Charlestown 
Neck, the short isthmus connecting the Charlestown 
peninsula with the mainland. Reed's men are stationed on 
the mainland side of the Neck, with sentries reaching onto 

°^ Samuel Bixby's Diary, June 6, 1775. — Massachusetts Historical Society Proceedings, 
XIV, 286; James Cogswell, aide to General Spencer, June 13, 1775, to Levi Hart. — 
Winsor, Proofs and Corrections, VI, 130 verso, Massachusetts Historical Society. 



ii6 ARTEMAS WARD l^ge 47 

Bunker Hill. In their rear, at Medford, is Stark's New 
Hampshire regiment. 

Then quickly approached a climax to all the threats and 
counter-threats. The English had received the greater part 
of the reinforcements for which they had been waiting. Well 
equipped, well disciplined, well officered, and headed by a 
galaxy of famous generals, they felt that their turn had 
come, and they decided that the time was ripe to raise the 
siege. Their first move was to be — on Sunday, June 18 — 
the seizure and fortification of Dorchester Neck. This to be 
succeeded by the occupation of the Charlestown peninsula, 
for it "was absolutely necessary that we should make our- 
selves masters of these heights."^" 

News of the English decision reached the besiegers. A 
crisis impended. With the English army moving out of the 
town, no man could certainly foretell the issue if, unchecked, 
it should push forward over either or both peninsulas to an 
attack upon the American lines. A successful English on- 
slaught might break up the only American army and throw 
the colonies and their cause into confusion and helplessness. 
For the safety of America the English must be held in 
Boston. 

The Committee of Safety, June 15, addressed the Provin- 
cial Congress, pressing for an immediate augmentation of 
the army, an immediate remedying of the deficiency in arms, 
an immediate commissioning of additional officers, and the 
ordering of all the militiamen in the colony to "hold them- 
selves in readiness to march on the shortest notice" ; and made 
the session historic by passing its famous "Bunker Hill" reso- 
lution : 

"Whereas, it appears of Importance to the Safety of this 
Colony, that possession of the Hill, called Bunker's Hill, in 
Charlestown, be securely kept and defended; and also some 

'"General Burgoyne to Lord Stanley, June 25, 1775, American Archi-ves, 4th, II, 1094. 
See also General Howe to General Harvey, and to his brother, Lord Howe, both of 
June 12, 177s, Proceedings of the Bunker Hill Monument Association, 1907, ill, 115. 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 117 

one hill or hills on Dorchester Neck be likewise Secured. 
Therefore, Resolved, Unanimously, that it be recommended 
to the Council of War, that the abovementioned Bunker's 
Hill be maintained, by sufficient force being posted there; 
and as the particular situation of Dorchester Neck is un- 
known to this Committee, they advise that the Council of 
War take and pursue such steps respecting the Same, as to 
them shall appear to be for the Security of this Colony." 

All histories have it that the result of the action of the 
council of war on this resolution of the Committee of 
Safety was Ward's order to fortify Bunker Hill — and the 
resolution and order have been variously interpreted: as a 
step of almost blind recklessness, a desperate hazard, occa- 
sioned by the urgent necessity to do something to check the 
British plans to raise the siege; as a move to offset the 
British intention to take Dorchester Neck; as an act of de- 
fiance calculated to bring on a general engagement; as the 
first step in the contemplated expulsion of the English from 
Boston. 

But the determination at which the council of war of 
June 15 actually arrived was of a character much bolder — 
no less than a sudden tightening of the lines around the 
British forces by the simultaneous fortification of both 
Blinker Hill and Dorchester Neck. 

Facing the next page (118), there printed for the first 
time, is a facsimile of the record of this decision in the hand- 
writing of Ward's secretary. 

At earlier meetings, Ward and Joseph Warren had op- 
posed the fortification of Bunker Hill until the American 
forces could be better equipped. But the English onslaught, 
long threatened, long deferred, was at last imminent, and 
resolve ran high to drive boldly forward to block it. 

The supply of powder was still very low, but the army 
had been acquiring regimental form as company after com- 
pany filled up, and it had achieved a little military experience 



ii8 ARTEMAS WARD l^ge 47 

in the skirmishes of the preceding weeks; so now that the 
Committee of Safety had placed the issue before them, 
recommending the occupation of Bunker Hill but leaving the 
matter of Dorchester Neck to their discretion, the council 
of war with true New England courage unanimously decided 
on occupying both. 

The Bunker Hill project alone had seemed rash a month 
earlier, but now twice as bold a movement was accepted 
without a dissenting voice, and a joint committee of the coun- 
cil of war and the Committee of Safety rode at once to Rox- 
bury to consult with Thomas and his staff. 

No previous history has told this because there was no 
record of the resolve to the historian's hand at the time that 
most histories of the Revolution were written, and when 
twenty-nine years ago the original manuscript came to light 
at the sale of the Thomas Raffles Collection, the history of 
the siege had settled into such a well-defined mold that later 
historians have overlooked that ancient piece of writing. 
Even iconoclasts have found opportunity only in new or mul- 
tiplied criticisms of strategy, tactics, or personaHties.^^ 

Histories in general state, or leave the impression, that 
Ward advised against the fortification of Bunker Hill< con- 
fusing his objections of an earlier date with the council of 
war of June 15. The resolution of the council of war of 
June 15 is proof that he approved the project. A council di- 
vided against Bunker Hill, with the chief character opposed, 

'* It is possible that some students failed to remember that the title "Dorchester 
Neck" was at that time applied to the Dorchester peninsula, not (as in the maps found 
in most histories) to the isthmus connecting it with the mainland. The isthmus, the 
modern "Washington Village," was then known as the "Little Neck." 

A "Neck" may be either a peninsula or an isthmus. In some cases, a change in 
popular usage has shifted a "Neck" title from a peninsula to an isthmus. "Boston 
Neck" is a good example of such a shift: it had first been employed to signify Boston, 
the peninsula (the deposition of "John Odlin and others," and the Indian deed of 1685, 
etc.), but later it came to mean instead the isthmus connecting Boston, the peninsula, 
with the mainland. "Charlestown Neck" also signified an isthmus. But "Dorchester 
Neck" was never employed up to the time of Bunker Hill, except to signify the Dorchester 
peninsula — and it adhered as the official title of the peninsula for another twenty-nine 
years, when annexation to the City of Boston brought its present title of South Boston. 






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THE RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF WAR, JUNE 15, 1775, 
TO OCCUPY BOTH BUNKER HILL AND DORCHESTER NECK 

Read ^rst the center resolution headed "In Committee of Safety." This is a copy, 
by Ward's secretary, of the Committee of Safety resolution which recommended 
the fortification of Bunker Hill, but left the matter of Dorchester Neck to the judg- 
ment of the Council of War. 

Read next the top section — the resolution of the Council of War to take possession 
of both Bunker Hill and Dorchester Neck. 

Read last the bottom of the manuscript — the record of the committees appointed to 
go to Roxbury to consult with General Thomas and his officers. 



It is possible that the manuscript should be read straight down from top to bottom, 
thus giving the Council of War credit also for initiating the resolution, but the form 
of the resolution, considered with the minutes of the Committee of Safety, makes 
it almost certain that the above sequence is correct. 



ijjS\ THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 119 

could not have unanimously agreed to double the risk by tak- 
ing Dorchester Neck also. 

Thomas and his Roxbury council evidently voted against 
the occupation of Dorchester Neck, for again the plan was 
set aside. One may dream a great variety of dreams as to 
the result of the simultaneous fortification of Bunker Hill 
and Dorchester Heights by the Americans on the night of 
June 16. Perhaps, if Thomas had acceded, it would have 
been June 75 — note the ''immediate^' of the council of war 
resolution. 

The Roxbury decision did not, however, dampen the ardor 
of the headquarters generals. They held to their deter- 
mination to fortify Bunker Hill, and on the following day 
(June 16) Ward issued his orders for the movement. 

Colonel Prescott was given command of the detachment. 
His force: the greater part of his own, Frye's, and Bridge's 
regiments; Samuel Gridley's artillery company; and about two 
hundred of Putnam's Connecticut men — a total of about 
1200. His instructions: to proceed that evening to Bunker 
Hill, build fortifications to be laid out by Colonel Richard 
Gridley, and defend them until he should be relieved. 

The cooperation of the right division at Roxbury being im- 
possible, and the center division at Cambridge being incapable 
of heavy withdrawals without weakening it to a dangerous 
degree, the decision to take Bunker Hill was a step bold to 
the point of rashness. It meant that Ward, with only 5000, 
or fewer, efiectives,^^ including Putnam's Connecticut men, 

'^ Ward's center division numbered during the week preceding Bunker Hill about 7500 
rank and file, including the Connecticut men and Sargent's small command, but the "fit 
for duty" proportion at that period — i.e., the regimental strength after deducting the sick 
and the absent and those necessarily held "on command"— seldom averaged more than 
two-thirds and generally fell below it. Hence the above estimate of "5000, or fewer, 
effectives." 

The main body of the division consisted of sixteen Massachusetts regiments, returning 
a total strength of 6063 privates in a General Report of June 9 preserved in the 
Massachusetts Arch'i'ves and printed in Frothingham's Siege of Boston, 118, note. 
(Frothingham's figure for Gridley's regiment should be corrected to 379 and the "Drum- 
mers, etc." line to read, "officers, drummers, fifers, &c.") I have found no general 
report closer to June 17. There are in the Massachusetts Archives, CXLVI, separate 
returns of several of the regiments dated after June 9 and before June 17, but the net 
change they effect in the total is not important. 



I20 ARTEMAS WARD [Age 47 

must hold his center secure from attack and support his left 
while fortifying a dangerously exposed eminence within the 
range of both the English land and water artillery. 

At noon, Ward and a number of other officers went out on 
Charlestown peninsula to reconnolter Bunker Hill and its 
surroundings.^^ 

Charlestown peninsula was at that time of the general 
shape of a conventional isosceles triangle, set a trifle south of 
southeast from its neck. It was a little more than 1 mile in 
length, and less than a mile in width at its base, the angles 
of its base pointing south and east. 

The Mystic River flowed down its northeast side; a mill- 
pond and a small bay bounded it on the west. On the south, 
the passage to the, larger, "back bay" separated it from 
Boston. 

The easterly side of the peninsula was laid out chiefly in 
hay fields and pastures : their strong dividing fences — of stone 
and timber — were on the following day to prove a serious ob- 
struction to the English troops. 

The westerly side was devoted in large part to orchards 
and gardens. 

Covering the south point, stood Charlestown itself — save 
one, the oldest town of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. 

The northerly face of Bunker Hill commenced its rise a 
little distance south of Charlestown Neck and presented an 
easy incline of about 350 yards to its smoothly rounded sum- 
mit, no feet in maximum height and roughly elliptical in 
form, its long axis extending about 500 yards southeast by 
east. On both sides (easterly and westerly) it sloped 
toward the water. Southerly, it was connected by a stretch 
of high ground with the smaller hill called Breed's Hill. 

Breed's Hill attained a maximum height of seventy-five 
feet. Its southerly slope reached to the houses of Charles- 
town, and its summit, about 600 yards from the shore, looked 

'° The Narrative of Major Thompson Maxwell, Essex Institute Historical Collections, 
VII, 107. 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 121 

across a ribbon of water onto the Copp's Hill section of 
Boston. 

Easterly of Breed's Hill were clay pits and brick kilns, 
and both northerly and easterly was a good deal of sloughy 
ground. 

The two peninsulas (Charlestown and Boston) faced each 
other like miming marionettes (see map facing page 92). 
The water separating them was only about a quarter-mile in 
width. 



CHAPTER VI 

June 16-17, 1775: Age 47 

Prescott's detachment for the fortification of Bunker Hill. Arrange- 
ments for its relief. The change to Breed's Hill. The battle told 
from headquarters standpoint. The day after the battle — the de- 
pression in Boston, and the excitement and apprehension in the 
surrounding towns. The English decision to abandon Boston. 

A FEW short hours after Ward's return to headquarters 
from Bunker Hill, Prescott's men paraded on Cam- 
bridge common. 

Pens of all kinds — well informed and otherwise — have 
told of the assembling of the detachment and Its evening 
march for the Charlestown peninsula : two sergeants with 
dark lanterns leading the way; then the tali form of 
Prescott at the head of his men; and, in the rear, the carts 
loaded with intrenching tools. Instead of recounting the 
story in the coldness of the printed black and white, let us 
conjure it up In the warmth of living thought. Let us hope 
that we all possess sufficient imagination to picture those 
brave men as they went silently on their way. Uncover and 
bow your head with reverence as they pass, for on the mor- 
row many of them will die In the bloodiest of all of the bat- 
tles of the American Revolution. 

Prescott's detachment was to be relieved the following 
evening by a force of about equal strength — the Nixon, 
Little, and Mansfield regiments, and 200 Connecticut troops. 
This relief party "with two days provisions and well equipped 



7775] THE BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL 123 

with arms and ammunition" to be on "parade at five o'clock 
ready to march." ^ 

At Ward's headquarters — an evening and a night of 

' The relief order, recorded in the orderly book kept by Nathan Stow, sergeant of 
Abishai Brown's company, Nixon's regiment, is an important addition to the history of 
the battle, for previous accounts have left the subject of relief or reinforcement vague and 
contradictory. 

Frothingham's Siege of Boston, 122, cites Brooks and Swett as authority for the state- 
ment that "it was understood that reinforcements and refreshments should be sent to 
Colonel Prescott on the following morning." On a later page (127) — with "Brooks' 
Statement; Swett's History; Prescott's Memoir" as authorities — it says that Prescott told 
his men "that he would never consent to their being relieved." Thus it would seem that 
though reinforcements were expected (in the morning), Prescott did not expect or want 
relief (in the morning). The two expressions "relief" and "reinforcement" are, however, 
so loosely used that it is not safe to attach great importance to their comparative mean- 
ings or positions. 

At an earlier date (March, 18 18, 256) the Analectic Magazine, in citing "Par- 
ticulars respecting the action," collected from Brooks and others, had stated that "There 
was some diversity of opinion as to the course to be pursued and what message should be 
sent to the commander-in-chief at Cambridge." Relief was urged by some, but Prescott 
said "No." . . . "It was determined to request the other three companies of 
Bridge's regiment to be sent as a reinforcement." 

The "Prescott MS." (Butler's History of Groton, 337; and elsewhere) deposes that 
General Ward stated "that the party should be relieved the next morning." Also, 
however, that, next morning, Prescott refused to "request the commander to relieve 
them"— but said he would send for reinforcements. 

The "Judge Prescott Account" (Massachusetts Historical Society Proceedings, XIV, 
68; and elsewhere) contains in different form the same ideas: "The officers 
urged him to send to the Commander-in-chief and request him to relieve them according 
to his engagement or at least to send a reinforcement. . . . The Colonel at once 
told them that he would never consent to their being relieved . . . but he would 
send for reinforcements and provisions." 

Prescott's own account has nothing on the subject. 

The Stow record clears away the mist and presents a clearly defined plan — Prescott's 
detachment to be relieved on the following evening (Saturday, June 17) by a new force 
of equal strength. 

Though agreed upon at the time of planning the occupation of Bunker Hill, the re- 
lief orders were not issued until the following morning, for the enterprise was a close 
secret. 

Putnam signed the orders for the Connecticut men. At least two examples survive: 
one in the orderly book by Moses Fargo, William Coit's company, Connecticut Historical 
Society Collections, VII, 22 (the hour for the parading of the relief party given as 6, 
instead of 5 p.m.) ; the other in that of Captain John Chester (?), Massachusetts His- 
torical Society Proceedings, XIV, 91. 

Nathan Stow died April 15, 1810, and his wife, Abigail, four days later. His 
estate descended by inheritance and purchase to two sons, Nathan and Cyrus. Nathan 
died November 10, 1831, and the homestead and its contents became the property of 
Cyrus. Cyrus died September 8, 1S76, and his widow, Matilda, March 13, 187S. As 
they had no children, their family effects were sold at auction. The old papers in the 
attic were bought by a junkman, and by him sold for a nominal sum to Albert E. 
Wood, a well-known resident of Concord. Among them Mr. Wood found Sergeant 
Nathan Stow's Orderly Book. 

Albert P. Putnam in 1896, and earlier, quoted the June 17 entries in letters to 
the Danvers (Mass.) Mirror. In 1 901 he reprinted his 1896 letter, with a number 
of others on the Putnam-Prescott controversy, in a pamphlet "Gen. Israel Putnam and 



124 ARTEMAS WARD V^ge 47 

anxious thought. Will Prescott succeed in fortifying the 
hill without arousing the enemy? If attacked before the 
works are strong enough to shield his men, what will be the 
fate of his little army? And if the defenses are completed 
without disturbing the English sentries — what next? What 
will be the English counter-move? An attack on Prescott's 
position? A drive at the American center by way of Lech- 
mere's Point or Willis Creek? Or . . . Dorchester Neck? 
Will the American occupation of the Charlestown peninsula 
cause the English to change their plan to seize Dor- 
chester Neck, or will they carry it out nevertheless, and, 
thence, try to raise the siege by attacking the Roxbury lines? 

Meantime happened that midsummer night's madness: — 
that protracted officers' conference near the foot of Bunker 
Hill which resulted in as bold a case of gauntlet-throwing as 
history anywhere relates — the substitution of Breed's Hill 
for Bunker HUP and Gridley's deliberate marking out of a 
redoubt on the lower hill directly facing Boston. 

The fortification of Bunker Hill would have held Charles- 

the Battle of Bunker Hill." He pointed out the new light shed by the June 17 entries 
but used them chiefly to aid his claim for Putnam preeminence. 

The orderly book was published in 1893-4, '" Eben Putnam's Monthly Historical 
Magazine, Salem, Mass., a periodical devoted principally to genealogy. In a prefatory 
letter in the issue of March, 1893, A. P. Putnam directed attention to the entries of 
June 17 with the remark that everything appearing on that day is of interest, but he 
apparently did not realize their specific importance. 

The orderly book was evidently unknown to otherwise well-informed writers of 
histories published several years after A. P. Putnam's use of it. This is probably 
due to the obscure mediums in which it was given space — a local newspaper; a small 
pamphlet of reprints from the same paper devoted to the interminable Putnam- Prescott 
controversy ; and a local genealogical magazine. 

The original is now in the Public Library, Concord, Mass. 

^ The majority weight of circumstantial evidence supports the generally accepted 
opinion that the fortifying of Bunker Hill was ordered and that the change to Breed's 
Hill was made after consultation on the ground. 

Prescott's letter of August 25, 1775, to John Adams (Frothingham, Siege of Boston, 
395) speaks of his orders to fortify "Breed's Hill," but this, though followed in Ban- 
croft's History of the United States, is usually taken as an unintentional mistake. The 
letter was written many years before Bunker Hill discussions and arguments became 
popular, and, hence, Prescott may be forgiven for not having employed the care in differ- 
entiating the two hills that would have been exercised by a writer of later date. 

Both the "Prescott MS." and the "Judge Prescott Account" have Bunker Hill as the 
original order, but both also state that the two hills were at that time generally covered 
by the one name of "Bunker Hill" — the title "Breed's Hill" for the southern elevation 
being of only local usage. 

The Committee of Safety report says that Breed's Hill was fortified "by some mistake." 



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7775] THE BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL 125 

town Neck fairly safe against an enemy attempt to land 
there to cut off the detachment, for the Neck would have lain 
between the double protection of Prescott's men on the hill 
and Reed's regiment on the mainland. Breed's Hill could 
have been occupied later, if Bunker Hill had proved de- 
fensible, just as, in the following March, Nook Hill was 
fortified after Dorchester Heights had been secured. Mov- 
ing forward to Breed's Hill on that night of June 16 greatly 
increased the danger of the detachment, for it left an un- 
occupied commanding height between it and the Neck. 

The choice is made, however, and picks and spades set 
immediately to the task — plying hurriedly but most efficiently. 

Gridley's lines call for a rectangular redoubt about 130 
feet square, with projecting angles to the south. The ram- 
parts to be about six feet high. 

A few short hours of whispered earnest labor — and then 
the day breaks. The redoubt is nearly finished! 

As the English discover it, they rub their eyes In amaze- 
ment. Yesterday evening, an empty hill; at dawn, a fortified 
enemy position: and the work done under the very muzzles 
of their cannon without a sentry having been alarmed. 

The English ships and forts open fire, but the Americans 
keep steadily at work. 

In Cambridge, hard upon the firing of the Lively (the first 
English ship to bark), Putnam calls at headquarters to 
consult Ward before riding out to view the result of the 
night's labors which are to make Prescott's men world-famous. 

It is still early In the morning when he returns to make his 
report. He urges the sending of reinforcements.^ Ward 
orders forward two hundred men of Stark's regiment (on the 
left at Medford),"* but decides against drawing any more 

' Despite this request for additional men, Putnam fully agreed with Ward on the 
necessity of strongly guarding the Cambridge position against attack. His forenoon 
instructions to his lieutenant-colonel were not immediately to bring his men onto the 
peninsula, but to get ready for the later relief decided upon. (See extract from Storrs' 
diary on page 128, note 10.) 

* Stark's letter to the President of the New Hampshire Provincial Congress, June 19, 
1775. — Neiv Hampshire Provincial Papers, VH, 522. 



126 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 47 

men from his Cambridge force until able to judge the British 
intention, for he has long center lines and the military sup- 
plies of the province to defend, and now fewer than 4000 
effective men for the purpose. 

After the conference with Putnam, Ward leaves head- 
quarters to see if preparations are under way for the relief 
detachment.^ 

At ten o'clock Major Brooks arrives at Cambridge to 
press for reinforcements, but Ward declines to add to the 
order just dispatched to Colonel Stark. 

The Committee of Safety is next to urge additional troops; 
and Devens, a prominent member, goes to Ward and demands 
that they be sent. 

Ward refuses to change the disposition of his forces or to 
weaken his center by even so much as a corporal's guard until 
the English plans are shown. ^ 

° Colonel Daniel Putnam's Letter, Connecticut Historical Society Collections, I, 240. 

' The conventional method of telling the story is to say that at "about 1 1 o'clock" 
or "later in the morning," Ward ordered forward Reed's and (the main body of) 
Stark's regiments to reinforce Prescott ; but Reed's and (the main body of) Stark's 
regiments were not ordered forward until the time of the general "alarm" — between 
noon and i p.m. The best authority on the movements of Stark's regiment is Stark's 
letter (already cited — page I25i note 4) to the President of the New Hampshire 
Provincial Congress, written on the second day after tlie battle while details were fresh 
in his mind. In it, Stark records Ward's morning instructions to send 200 men to 
Prcscott's assistance, and the detailing of Lieutenant-Colonel Wyman with a force of 
that number. He then adds that "about 2 o'clock in the afternoon express orders came 
for the whole of my regiment to proceed to Charlestown to oppose the enemy who were 
landing on Charlestown point." This agrees considerably better with the arrival 
of the regiment on the battlefield than do the conventional accounts. "About 2 o'clock" — 
between i and 2 o'clock — any time after i o'clock (Dearborn stated that the regi- 
ment marched at "about I o'clock") — is when one might expect a message to 
get through to Stark if dispatched when (between 12 and i o'clock) the news was 
received at Cambridge of the first English landing. Numerous stories of the battle 
have told (in conjunction with accounts of the supposed "11 o'clock" or "later in 
the morning" order) that Stark was delayed by the necessity to make up his am- 
munition and it is assumed that this explains why many of the men marching on the 
"noon" to "i o'clock" alarm got to the field before he did. The making up of the am- 
munition is apparently well attested, but it also fits in with the "about 2 o'clock" 
order, for when, in the morning, Stark found that part of his regiment was ordered 
into action, it is not unreasonable to presume that he began making preparations against 
further orders and was ready to march promptly on their receipt. 

As Reed's and Stark's regiments are always coupled in these orders, and in their 
movements on June 17, it is probably correct to stale that Reed's regiment also was 
not ordered forward until the time of the general alarm. Otherwise, because of its 
proximity to the battleground, its long delay in reaching the field would have required 
a great deal of explaining. 



177 S\ THE BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL 127 

Ward has been charged with hesitancy and indecision on 
the day of the "Battle of Bunker Hill" — the irrevocable title 
of the action despite the change to Breed's Hill. If those 
who disagree with his judgment had accused him of being 
stubborn^ they would have assumed a defensible position. 
But "hesitating and "indecisive" I — the witnesses prove that 
such statements are very far from the truth. 

Ward was again suffering from a severe attack of calculus, 
and his condition lends an element of the dramatic to his 
stand on that fateful morning — the "sulky" man whom 
Hutchinson had tried in vain to bribe, now in a day of sick- 
ness, as commander of the rebel forces, inflexibly holding to 
what he believes to be right in the face of entreaty, argu- 
ments, and demands, and successfully maintaining it in the 
face of all opposition. 

In Boston, is much stir and discussion. Short of moving 
to raise the siege, the English officers have no choice but to 
dislodge the Americans on Breed's Hill, for another day 
may see heavier cannon mounted, with Boston as a point- 
blank target. There is, though, difference of opinion as to 
the tactics to be employed. 

General Clinton and other officers want to cut the Americans 
off by taking them in the rear, but General Gage opposes this. 

The English officers decide to carry the post by storm — 
they will "take the bull by the horns" — and "teach the im- 
pudent Yankees a lesson" 1 

Then to Cambridge between twelve and one o'clock^ 
comes, news of the landing of the British troops on the 
peninsula 1 The alarm is sounded: bells ring, the drums beat 

^ This adjective was applied by one critic— Curtis Guild, Jr., in his address at 
the 1910 meeting of the Bunker Hill Monument Association. 

'Captain Chester (Spencer's regiment) is the authority usually quoted to fix the time 
that the alarm was given: he says "about i o'clock" and "just after dinner." The 
testimony of Jesse Smith (Nixon's regiment) was similar to that of Chester. — Froth- 
ingham, Siege of Boston, 132, note. Lieutenant-Colonel Storrs (Putnam's regiment) 
says "at noon" (see diary extract, page 128, note 10). Caleb Haskell, fifer in 
Captain Lunt's company (Little's regiment), states that the army "set out" after news 
that the "enemy were landing at Charlestown." — Caleb Haskell's Diary. 



128 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 47 

to arms. The English commander has at last shown his 
hand — and Ward orders a strong force forward to meet him. 
All available men of nine Massachusetts regiments, part of 
Gridley's regiment of artillery, and one of the remaining com- 
panies of Bridge's regiment set out at once for the battlefield. 
And an express rider gallops to Charlestown common and 
thence to Medford to summon Reed's and Stark's New 
Hampshire men to the fray.^ 

At the same time Captain Israel Putnam, Jr., brings word 
from his father, and orders forward his own company and 
the center contingent of Spencer's men.^*^ 

Ward's center division is now reduced to the Jonathan 
Ward and Gardner regiments; rather more than half of Put- 
nam's Connecticut men; Sargent's small command (posted at 
Lechmere's Point) ; and two companies of Bridge's regiment. 
It is guarded on the left by Patterson's regiment, held at the 
breastwork near Prospect Hill. 

The Jonathan Ward regiment is marched to Lechmere's 
Point to join Sargent's men as a vanguard to meet any at- 
tempt of the British to attack via Willis Creek. 

° See foot-note on page 126, note 6. 

" Frothingham {Siege of Boston, 188) refers to a statement that all of Putnam's 
regiment was in the action, and also says (132), "General Putnam ordered on the 
remainder of the Connecticut troops" — giving Chester's letter (July 22, I775! Siege of 
Boston, 389) as authority. Chester's letter suggests the idea, but the diary of Storrs, 
lieutenant-colonel of Putnam's regiment, and the casualty list show that the instructions 
to the Connecticut men were limited as I have given them above. 

Following is Storrs' entry for June 17 {Massachusetts Historical Society Proceedings, 
XIV, 85-86) : 

"At sun rise this morning a fire began from the ships, but moderate; about 10 went 
down to Gen. Putnam's post who has the command. Some shot whistled around us. 
Tarried there a spell and returned to have my company in readiness to relieve them ; one 
killed and one wounded when I came away." 

"About 2 o'clock there was a brisk cannonade from the ships on the battery or en- 
trenchment. At noon orders came to turn out immediately, and that the regulars were 
landed at sundry places. Went to headquarters for our regimental. Received orders to 
repair with our regiment to No. i and defend it. No enemy appearing, orders soon 
came that our people at the entrenchment were retreating and for us to secure the re- 
treat. I immediately marched for their relief, the regulars did not come of? from 
Bunker's Hill, but have taken possession of the entrenchments, and our people make 
a stand on Winter Hill and we immediately went to entrenching; flung up by morn- 
ing an entrenchment about 100 feet square. Done principally by our regiment under 
Putnam's directions, had but little sleep the night." 



177 S\ THE BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL 129 

Gardner's regiment is sent to join Patterson, taking the 
place of Doolittle's regiment, which is marching to Charles- 
town. 

The Putnam men are drawn in toward Cambridge. 

The two companies of Bridge's regiment are posted for the 
immediate protection of headquarters. 

At Roxbury, also, all was activity. The English com- 
mander might attempt a diversion by a drive from the Boston 
Neck lines. Every man was ordered to arms, and Colonel 
Learned marched his regiment to the meeting-house and 
thence to the burying-yard, which was the alarm-post, and 
there placed his men in ambush with two field-pieces "placed 
to give it to them unawares, should the regulars come."^^ 

At Cambridge, the noise and excitement died down as 
regiment after regiment passed on. The town, says David 
Townsend, a young man studying medicine under Joseph 
Warren, was "quiet as the Sabbath." Breathless tension suc- 
ceeded the hurry of forming and marching troops. Ameri- 
can and English forces were for the first time opposed in 
formal battle. Prescott's men had challenged; Gage had 
accepted the challenge; and all that Massachusetts stood for 
was at stake. 

Ward had done the utmost that lay in his power. His 
center was carved lean of troops and stripped all but bare 
of powder. 

He was again out (presumably on a tour of inspection) 
when Townsend called at headquarters.^^ The only man 
there was Dr. Warren, just appointed Massachusetts' second 
major-general, also indisposed that day and taking a much 
needed rest. 

On Townsend's arrival Warren rose and left the house, 
riding direct to the battlefield on which before the sun 
set he was to lay down his life. When he reached the re- 
doubt he cheered Prescott's men — all of them fatigued, some 

" Samuel Bixby's Diary, Massachusetts Historical Society Prqceedings, XIV, 287. 
^ Neiv England Historical and Genealogical Register, XII, 230. 



130 ARTEMAS WARD [.Age 47 

of them hungry and thirsty ^^ — by telling them that 2000 addi- 
tional troops would be with them in twenty minutes ; that he 
had passed them on the way. 

The English complete their debarkation at Moulton's Point 
without mishap or interruption, but Howe, who commands 
them, sees that the American position is stronger than it had 
appeared and he sends word for additional troops. He 
awaits their arrival before beginning the attack. 

Back in Cambridge, when Ward learns that the English 
troops on the Charlestown peninsula are being reinforced, 
and that there is consequently little danger of a raid on Cam- 
bridge via Willis Creek,^^ he orders Sargent and Jonathan 
Ward^^ also on to Charlestown. 

" The orders te Prescott's detachment required "provisions for 24 hours," but some — ■ 
perhaps a considerable number — of the men had failed to husband their supplies. Efforts 
were made by Devens and others to send fresh supplies, but horses were scarce. A few 
wagons crossed, but the cannonade frothing over the Neck, though not very danger- 
ous, was effective in checking vehicular traffic. The want most keenly and most 
generally felt was for liquid refreshments. This fact has been translated into pathetic 
accounts of the longing for drinking water: "and, the greatest want of all, tliey lacked 
the delicious draught of pure, cool water for their labor-worn and heat exhausted 
frames" (Ellis) ; "during the whole day they received not even a cup of cold water" 
(Bancroft) ; and, similarly, with variations, many other writers. But what those New 
England farmers were awaiting was their rum, beer, or cider. If the men had merely 
wanted 'water, they could have obtained plenty of it from the houses along the main 
road and from the wells in Charlestown. Charlestown was in their undisputed 
possession during the entire morning. Contemporary depositions state that some bar- 
rels of beer were received (Frothingham's Siege of Boston, 133, note; Winsor's Nar- 
rati-ve and Critical History of America, VI, 137), and in the Boston Public Library 
is the order signed by Joseph Ward, as secretary, for two barrels of rum "for the Troops 
at Charlestown." But the quantities that reached the men were not sufficient to meet 
their needs er desires. 

" About the same time he also perhaps received word from Colonel Sargent, at Lech- 
mere's Point, that the schooner Sargent mentioned in his letter of long after had given up 
the attempt to make a landing by Willis Creek. "A large schooner, with from five to 
six hundred men, attempted to gain the landing, but the wind against her and the tide 
turning, she returned. About 4 p.m.. General Ward permitted me to march my regi- 
ment with one called his own to Charlestown." — Paul Dudley Sargent to S. Swett, De- 
cember 20, 1825 (Frothingham's Command in the Battle of Bunker Hill, 10). 

" Washburn's History of Leicester, 304, and A. H. Ward's History of Shreiushury, 
55. have the story of the halting of Jonathan Ward's regiment on the mainland side of 
Charlestown Neck by a horseman who declared (Washburn's Leicester) that "orders 
had been sent that no more troops should go into action." Part of the Jonathan Ward 
regiment, nevertheless, in defiance of the order, marched across the Neck and toward the 
battlefield in time to help cover the retreat from the redoubt. According to tradition 
the horseman was Benjamin Church, but other circumstances make this doubtful. 



7775] THE BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL 131 

Shortly after, Gardner, too, sets his regiment in motion, 
drawn in the same direction. ^^ 

Meanwhile, what of that first main force dispatched to 
Prescott's assistance? 

After leaving Cambridge, there is a great deal of con- 
fusion, for the men are not yet experienced soldiers. They 
start out as companies and regiments, but many units lose 
formation and become inextricably tangled. Some troops 
fail to cross Charlestown Neck; others halt on Bunker Hill 
instead of pressing forward. Some do not reach the firing 
line until the battle is almost over; many do not reach it 
at all.i7 

The American positions are nevertheless fairly well 
manned by the time the English are ready to attack. And, 
in one form or another, they all but span the peninsula. 

The redoubt and its breastwork extension running north- 
by-east down the hill, are held by Massachusetts men under 
Prescott's direct command. As also, with one company of 
New Hampshire men, is the short impromptu line to the 
right. 

The breastwork is about 300 feet in length and reaches to 
a piece of sloughy ground that has been mentioned so often 
that it has become known as "the Slough." 

In the redoubt is Dr. Warren. He has set aside his high 

'" Gardner's instructions had been to assist Patterson in holding the position later 
known as Fort No. 3, but inactivity within sight of the first pitched battle of the 
siege galled him because of what he considered a stigma on his reputation — the sud- 
den dispersal of his command in the battle of April 19. 

''Of the nine Massachusetts regiments ordered forward in force between 12 and i 
o'clock, five (Brewer's, Nixon's, Little's, Doolittle's, Woodbridge's) were represented 
on the firing line at the time of the first attack — about 3 p.m. The additional com- 
pany of Bridge's regiment also was there, and one new company of Gridley's artillery. 
Later in the action, two other regiments were represented on the field — Asa Whitconib's 
and Gerrish's (the latter by Adjutant Febiger's detachment) ; and Trevett brought on 
his company of Gridley's artillery in time to do good service. The other regiments and 
parts of regiments failed to be represented because their commanders misconstrued or 
disobeyed orders and halted at other points: on the wrong side of the Neck, as Mans- 
field's regiment. Major Scarborough Gridley's companies of Gridley's regiment, a part of 
Gerrish's regiment under Captain Mighil, and Scammon's regiment (Scammon's regiment 
did cross the Neck but not until the fighting was over) ; or on Bunker Hill proper, as 
part of Gerrish's regiment under Colonel Gerrish. 



132 ARTEMAS WARD lAge 47 

military appointment and is serving as a volunteer in the 
ranks. 

Behind the "rail fence" — that famous hay-stuffed double 
fence, and its stone wall extension — starting from a point 
near the base of Bunker Hill and reaching across to the 
shore of the Mystic River, are Colonels Stark and Reed with 
their New Hampshire regiments; Captain Knowlton with the 
original Connecticut detachment, and some Massachusetts 
men. 

The weakest point of the line is between the slough and 
the rail fence. It Is only slightly protected by short stretches 
of fence or hedge. Part of the time it is defended by the 
few American cannon brought on. 

A second line of defense — of earth breastworks — has been 
commenced on Bunker Hill. 

The English reinforcements land at about three o'clock. 

There is no longer any sign of life in the redoubt. The 
English officers begin to fear that the Americans have re- 
treated and that there will be no fight. 

But the Americans are there — coolly awaiting the enemy. 

Their officers have ordered them to lie low and hold their 
fire until the English are within sixty yards. 

The redcoats advance in two divisions — one under Howe 
to flank the American position by turning or breaking 
through the rail fence; the other, under Pigot, to storm the 
redoubt and breastwork. 

They move slowly, for they are burdened with full knap- 
sacks, hindered by the field fences, and sweltered by a hot 
June sun. But they feel unbounded confidence in their 
strength and expect an easy victory. 

The English draw near to the American positions. 

The Americans receive the order to fire ! 

A sudden hail of bullets stops the English advance and 
mows down the ranks. 

A few minutes the redcoats hold firm — then they fall back 
in full retreat I 



ijjSl THE BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL 133 

The American farmers have won the first round against 
the famed soldiers of Great Britain! 

A short breathing space — then the English rally and ad- 
vance again. 

Charlestown meantime had been set ablaze, completing 
an extraordinarily spectacular panorama of war and destruc- 
tion: 

An earth-fort set upon a hill; further back, a fragile fence 
line stretching to the shore. A brilliantly accoutered army ad- 
vancing over their dead comrades to the assault. Shells 
and cannon-balls belching from ships and land-batteries; 
flames coursing the streets of Charlestown and curling up its 
church spires. Hundreds of spectators on the surrounding 
hills and the roof-tops of Boston. 

The English are within thirty yards of the American lines 
when the militiamen receive the order to fire. 

Again their bullets tear through the enemy's ranks with 
terrible effect. 

The English press forward a few steps in the face of the 
storm — but it is too deadly — and again they retreat, this time 
precipitously and In blank disorder. 

There is a longer interval now, and some on both sides 
think, and hope, that the fighting is over for the day. 

Instead, the English general is making new plans. He 
has learned that it Is not always easy to "take the bull by 
the horns," and for this third assault he adopts new tactics. 

He trains his artillery, hitherto misplaced and ill-handled, 
so that the cannon-balls penetrate the end of the breastwork 
and scour its length, driving its defenders into the redoubt; 
then concentrates his attack on the redoubt, telling his men 
to hold their fire and take the position at the point of the 
bayonet. 

As Howe moves his men forward for a third assault, Pres- 
cott realizes that his position is desperate. His powder is 
almost exhausted, and cannon-shot come crashing into the 
redoubt through the north passageway. 



134 ARTEMAS WARD iAge 47 

But he has no thought except to fight to the last moment! 

His men reserve their fire until the English are within 
twenty yards. But this time the enemy push forward with- 
out returning it — the American fire slackens for want of 
ammunition and the EngHshmen crowd up to and over the 
parapet. 

The Americans fight their way out of the redoubt and 
through the two divisions closing in on them. 

The English attempt to flank in force, but are held back by 
the men at the rail fence and a few gallant companies of 
late arrivals descending Bunker Hill. The American death 
toll is heavy here; and — unhappy day for his beloved 
Massachusetts — Joseph Warren is among those who fall. 

The Americans retreat over Bunker Hill. On its brow 
Putnam tries to make another stand — but the projected 
breastworks are not half built and the position is too exposed, 
so the retreat continues over Charlestown Neck. 

The English have won the battle, but they have been so 
severely handled that Howe fears the risk of following the 
Americans onto the mainland. 

Instead, the two shaken armies settle themselves on op- 
posite sides of the Neck and feverishly begin throwing up 
protective works : the English on Bunker Hill facing the main- 
land; the Americans on Prospect and Winter hills. 

And thus the sun went down on the bullet-riddled fences 
and the blood-stained fields, and the long summer evening 
brought to a close the most eventful day in American history. 

The ofllicers on both sides were glad of the respite from 
active hostilities, but there was no truce in the hearts of the 
venturesome of the American rank and file. Darkness had 
scarcely fallen when a number of them were, as individuals, 
trying to carry the fight back to the enemy, sniping from the 
cover of isolated houses and creeping toward the English 
advance lines on the Neck in search of enemy targets. ^^ 

" Martin Hunter, later a general of His Majesty's Forces, then ensign of the 52d 
Regiment of Foot, recorded that attacks on his regiment were made all through the 



7775] THE BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL 135 

Nor did the coming of darkness bring any pause in the 
American labor on the new lines — picks and shovels plied 
unceasingly to make ready for the redcoats if they should 
follow up their advantage by a night assault. 

Once only during the night did the work stop — and that 
when shortly before dawn there came an alarm that the Eng- 
lish were sallying out from Bunker Hill with artillery and 
light horse. Every man was ordered to drop his tools and 
stand to his arms. 

But the redcoats came not. And within an hour of day- 
break Ward had strengthened the new Prospect Hill post 
with a thousand Massachusetts and Connecticut men drawn 
from the Roxbury division. ^^ 

The Sunday that dawned saw in the American camps none 
of the peace-time New England Sabbath calm. Bullets had 

night. — Moorsom, Historical Record of the 52d Regiment, 9. Hunter had fought in the 
battle and was on the following day promoted to lieutenant. 

Lieutenant-Colonel Stephen Kemble (Journal, Kemble Papers, I, 45) also complained 
that "All this night the Rebels kept a popping fire on our Advanced Posts, from Houses 
on the opposite side of Charles Town Neck, wounded several Men, and Killed one officer." 

^^ Histories give the impression that the works built on Prospect and Winter hills 
represented, during the first two or three days following, only the labor of the men 
who had stopped in the vicinity after the retreat from Breed's Hill. The first rein- 
forcement noted by Frothingham {Siege of Boston, 211) is an order of June 20 for one- 
half of eight Massachusetts regiments to be drafted daily to relieve the troops on 
Prospect Hill. But they were strengthened in part much earlier — at least as soon 
as the very early morning after the battle. General Greene tells of the marching of 
1000 men from the Roxbury division on the night of June 17 {Sparks Papers, XLVHI, 
f. 68 verso. Harvard College Library) ; and Samuel Haws of Joseph Read's regiment 
records {Military Journals of Tivo Private Soldiers, 58, 59) that his regiment was "or- 
dered to Cambridge to asist our forces and we reached their about twelve o'clock at night 
and Lodged in the meting house" — then at daybreak (i8th) marched to Prospect Hill, 
"expecting to come to an ingagement." Noah Chapin, Jr., ensign of Solomon Willes' 
company, Spencer's regiment, has much the same story to tell — of marching "in hast" to 
Prospect Hill, reaching there "a Little after Sun Rise." — Original diary, State Library, 
Hartford, Conn. 

About noon, a new "alarm" caused additional reinforcements to be sent to the hill 
from tlie center division. — Caleb Haskell's Diary, 6. 

As no engagement developed. Read's men were at "about 4 o'clock" ordered back to 
Roxbury and "arived their about sunset very weary." The Connecticut contingent was 
also back in Roxbury "a little before night." 

On the day following (June 19), one-half (by companies) of seven Massachusetts 
regiments of the center division and half ef the Connecticut forces were ordered to Pros- 
pect Hill. — Nathan Stoiv's Orderly Book. 

These reinforcements were evidently very pleasing to Putnam, for Cook of Tiverton 
told Stiles {Literary Diary of Ezra Stiles, I, 574) that on June 19 he "saw General 
Putnam entrenching" on Winter Hill "and in good Spirits being fully reinforced." 



136 ARTEMAS WARD lAge 4^ 

to be "run" and cartridges to be made "in readiness for 
another battle";^*' and fatigue parties were everywhere busy 
— adding to the Roxbury and Cambridge defenses, as well 
as to the rapidly developing lines guarding the mainland side 
of Charlestown Neck — from this date a separate and im- 
portant division of the besieging army. 

It was thought that the enemy would quickly strike afresh 
to raise the siege. 

The roads for miles around were again filled with excited 
travel — but this time it surged in opposing streams, mutually 
congesting and obstructing: militiamen hurrying toward the 
American camps, and women and children from the neigh- 
boring towns fleeing back into the country,^^ whole families 
loaded into big farm-carts, or on horseback, or afoot. And 
at Watertown the Provincial Congress ordered that a horse 
be held constantly ready so that the secretary could at a 
moment's notice ride away with his records. "It is expected 
that the English will come out over the Neck to-night," 
wrote Abigail Adams, "and a dreadful battle must ensue. 
Almighty God! cover the heads of our countrymen, and be 
a shield to our dear friends." ^^ 

But in Boston that Sunday no battle plan was contem- 
plated. English cannon roared almost continuously — but it 
was the defensive roar of a sorely wounded lion, purposed 
to keep his enemy at bay. There was no thought of so soon 
retrying the issue with the sharpshooting New England reb- 
els. Gage had driven the Americans from their hastily seized 
position, and all of the Charlestown peninsula had passed into 
his hands, but his army had sustained losses so heavy as to 
lower its morale and to cripple its offensive power. He had 
removed the immediate menace of Breed's Hill, but he was 
no nearer freedom of action than before the battle. He 
had stretched one of the walls of the jail, but the jail still 

^^ Caleb Haskell's Diary, 6. 

^ James Warren, June l8, 1775, Warren-Adams Letters, I, 59. 

^'^ Letters of Mrs. Adams, I, June 18, 1775. 



7775] THE BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL 137 

held him prisoner, and its bars now loomed before his eyes as 
murderously secure. 

The battle just fought had indeed definitely decided the 
outcome of the siege of Boston. It was the direct and spe- 
cific cause of the evacuation of the capital. The period of 
English occupation following June 17 constituted, consciously 
or otherwise, merely so many months of "marking time." 
Right up to the last dispatch received prior to the news of 
the Battle of Bunker Hill, official England had held no in- 
tention to relinquish Boston. On the contrary, Lord Dart- 
mouth, writing July i, tells Gage that the King trusts "that 
we shall soon hear" that the rebels surrounding Boston 
"have been dispersed, their Works destroyed, and a com- 
munication opened with the Country." It was further .be- 
lieved that even if the English force should be deemed in- 
adequate "to advance further into the country," it was never- 
theless large enough not only to hold Boston, but also to 
recover possession of New York, and perhaps, in addition, 
to seize and maintain a post on Rhode Island. 

But Gage's report of the battle changed all this, and with- 
in five weeks of the official acknowledgment of its receipt, 
Lord Dartmouth received word from the King that he con- 
sidered it not only advisable but "necessary to abandon Bos- 
ton before the winter." ^^ 

^ The story is easily and clearly read in the correspondence between Lord Dart- 
mouth and the English commanders in Boston. At the beginning of the year (January 
18, 1775), General Gage had written to Lord Dartmouth that "it's the opinion of Most 
People, if a respectable Force is seen in the Field, the most obnoxious of the Leaders 
seized, and a Pardon proclaimed for all other's, that Government will come off Victori- 
ous, and with less Opposition than was expected a few Months ago." — Stevens Trans- 
cripts, Library of Congress. And Lord Dartmouth on April 15 had said, "It is imagined 
that by the time this Letter reaches you, the army under your Command will be equal to 
any operation that may become necessary." — Stevens Transcripts, Library of Congress; 
Bancroft MSS., England and America, New York Public Library. No doubt then in his 
mind of the success of the King's army in Boston ! 

The events of April 19 roused indignation at "the rash and rebellious conduct of the 
Provincials," but they did not alarm official England. Gage sent his report of the 
"skirmish" (the report was received in London June 10) and Lord Dartmouth, replying, 
writes (as quoted above in the main text) that the King trusts "that we shall 
soon hear" that the rebels surrounding Boston "have been dispersed, their Works de- 
stroyed, and a communication opened with the Country." He continues, "Whether 



138 ARTEMAS WARD [J^e 47 

you have found it expedient or not to advance further into the Country will have de- 
pended upon your own judgement of the utility & propriety of such a plan of operation 
& upon the advice & opinions of the able Generals by whom you are assisted ; but if 
from the probability of small advantage on the one hand, & great risk on the other 
hand, you should have desisted from such an enterprise or should have been of opinion 
that your Force is inadequate, in that case it is hoped that the defence of Boston, 
& the possession of the circumjacent posts necessary to that defence may be secured by 
a part of the Army & another part detached under the command of one of the Majors 
General to recover possession of New York, which is in every light a post of the 
greatest importance." Turning next to Rhode Island, Lord Dartmouth says, "It is not 
wished to encourage ideas of a separation of our Force into small detachments that may 
hazard the loss of the whole, & therefore I shall only observe that the insular part of 
the Colony of Rhode Island appears to me to be a post of very great advantage, not 
only from its situation in general but as it would keep open a communication between 
Boston & New York, & from which either might in case of exigency receive succour & 
support." — July i, Stevetis Transcripts, Library of Congress; Bancroft MSS., England 
and America, New York Public Library. 

All such dreams faded after the arrival (July 25) of Gage's report of the battle of 
Bunker Hill. Lord Dartmouth, who had been so confident of the English position in Bos- 
ton, quickly decided to relinquish it. In a long letter written a few days after the receipt 
of the report, he notes the possible necessity of quitting Boston and perhaps removing 
the entire force to Halifax and Quebec (August 2, American Archives, 4th, III, 7) ; 
and only four weeks later he sends to Howe (about to succeed Gage) the message 
(given in the concluding sentence of the main text of this chapter) that the King 
considers it not only advisable but "necessary to abandon Boston before the winter" 
(September 5, American Archives, 4th, III, 642). 

Historians have noted the effect of the battle on conditions in Boston, and Gage's — 
and Howe's — consequent desire to evacuate it ; its effect also on public and official 
opinion in England and elsewhere in Europe; and further that in November there 
arrived from England instructions to abandon the town : but the direct connection 
between the battle itself and the evacuation order has been obscured by the length of 
time required for sailing vessels to make a complete circuit of correspondence between 
the English commander-in-chief in Boston and the office of the Secretary of State in 
London. No wireless — no cable — no steamships then! Many students have failed to 
realize that Lord Dartmouth's letters of August 2 and September 5 were based on con- 
ditions of much earlier dates. The report of the battle of June 17 was, as noted above, 
not received in London until July 25. When Lord Dartmouth prepared his "abandon 
Boston" letter of September 5, he had in hand only the reports of conditions immediately 
following the battle. Even at the moment of signing, he was in receipt of no advice of 
later Boston date than July 26. 

One sees also occasional reference to the advice of Lord Barrliigton, Secretary of War, 
so early as November 12, 1774, to Lord Dartmouth, that the troops be withdrawn from 
Boston as "a place where at present they can do no good, and without intention, may 
do harm." — Political Life of TFm. Viscount Barrlngton, 140. But this advice can 
have had little, if any, influence with Lord Dartmouth and his associates, for the general 
plan advocated was diametrically opposed to the royal and ministerial policy. Bar- 
rington's idea was to rely exclusively upon the navy to reduce Massachusetts to sub- 
mission — by cutting off the fisheries, killing commerce, etc. He would have Gage 
withdraw all troops from the province — first moving them from Boston and then 
taking them back to England when "a proper juncture shall offer for their return." 
Barrington's idea of Massachusetts popular sentiment was ludicrously inaccurate. 
He would have Gage instructed that, on thus removing his troops from Boston, he 
should remind the people of Massachusetts that it was their own fault that he was 
abandoning them unprotected to the "tyrannical anarchy" which had come upon them! — 
that he must leave the colony to be the prey of Its own "present distracted state, until 
it shall become disposed to co-operate in helping itself to a better." 



CHAPTER VII 

Criticisms of the Battle of Bunker Hill 

IN the preceding chapter I have told the story of the 
Breed's Hill-Bunker Hill battle from headquarters' stand- 
point. It reads differently from other accounts because it 
is based in part on contemporary records hitherto over- 
looked, but I have been careful to avoid personal bias and 
have eschewed embellishment and partisan argument. 

I have no quarrel with those who criticize either the con- 
ception or the execution of the battle.^ There is room for 
honest disagreement on both, and hindsight can always find 
points on which to hang or by which to bolster an argument. 

* The animadversions of James Warren, of Plymouth, are considered on pages 142, 
162—163. See also the reference to Henry Dearborn, of New Hampshire, on page 142. 
Other criticisms are either milder or in their exaggeration hold an element of humor: 

Lieutenant Samuel B. Webb could in his Connecticut enthusiasm find no good in any 
general officer except Putnam! He wrote, June 19, 1775: "For God's sake, to urge 
Gen. Lee and Col. Washington to join, head-officers is what we stand greatly in need 
of; ive have no acting- head here but Putnam — he acts nobly in e-verything." This quota- 
tion is from an extract from an additional leaf of the Chester-Webb letter of June 19, 
printed in Frothingham's Siege of Boston, 416, Third and later editions. Neither the 
extract, nor any other part of the additional leaf, is given in Ford's Correspondence and 
Journals of Samuel B. TFebb. The facsimile in the latter work of the main part of 
the Chester-Welib account also differs from the copyist's description in tlie Siege of Boston. 

Colonel Paul Dudley Sargent, in his turn, could see only New Hampshire men ! It 
was his retrospective opinion that if Ward had "marched the whole of his troops then 
in Cambridge to Charlestown not one of the enemy would have escaped, but instead of 
that he only walked Hasting's front yard the whole day." Then, continuing, he 
bruslied to one side all Massachusetts and Connecticut fighters, to bestow tl)e entire 
credit of June 17 on Stark's and Reed's New Hampshire men, for "those two regi- 
ments did all that was done that day, of any consequence." — Letter, December 20, 1825, 
to S. Swett. Another part of this letter by Sargent is quoted on page 130, note 14. 

An unsigned report by an English government agent recorded a poor opinion of Ward 
as expressed by two French officers, then in London after a visit to America, whom he 
believed to be "in the service of the Rebel Americans." Their statements, though, 
cannot be taken very seriously, for they include very tall yarns of the devices which 
the "rebel chiefs" employed "to keep up" the spirit of the Americans, "some of which 
they themselves were witness to, such as making their own people put on English regi- 

139 



I40 ARTEMAS WARD iAge47 

Some of the questions which have long engaged writers 
and controversialists can now be laid to rest, settled by the 
publication of new contemporary evidence and the better 
consideration of old. Of these are the viewpoints of the 
American military leaders at Cambridge concerning both the 
Bunker Hill project and the possibility of occupying Dor- 
chester Neck; the original plan for the relief of the detach- 
ment; and lesser items, as the supply of "drinking water." 
Some others must still remain largely a matter of individual 
opinion. 

Questioning the fundamental policy of the expedition, one 
may ask with much sapience why the Americans thought it 
necessary to occupy the Charlestown peninsula, when egress 
from Boston by that route could have been blocked, or 
checked, with much less risk by works on the mainland side 
of Charlestown Neck. 

It was, perhaps, a move foolishly reckless, but it was also 
a move of high moral courage — and was rewarded by suc- 
cess far beyond all expectations : beyond, if you will, all 
merit! It had been projected to prevent the enemy from 
moving out of Boston onto the mainland, and it resulted in 
driving them out of Boston into the sea 1 

If the battle had not been fought, the English would, 
as their least exploit — and at little, if any, cost — have taken 

mentals, & come into Camp in the character of Officers & soldiers deserting from his 
Majestys troops — & one man personated a Member of Parliament." — Stevens' Fac- 
similes, XIII, 130X. 

Another spy said that the American army was incensed against Ward because he 
"never so much as gave one Written order that day." — Belcher, First American Civil 
War, I, 208. This idea has found lodgment in the minds of some writers, but (irre- 
spective of its merits as an indictment if it were accurate) it is not based on either 
facts or probabilities. Ward's Order Book contains only one order of June 17 — 
that to Thomas for ordnance to be sent to Cambridge (the separate MS. order is owned 
by the American Antiquarian Society — United States Revolution, IV, 15), but there can 
be no reasonable doubt that of the many others given, a number were reduced to writing. 
Several fugitive examples testify to the probability: two are in the possession of the 
Boston Public Library, and the copy of the relief order (page 123, note) tells of a 
third. 

John Pitts wrote, July 20, 1775, of the confusion and lack of command, but his 
references apparently apply chiefly to the immediate vicinity of the battlefield, for his 
specific complaint is that "there were not officers enough to lead the men on." — Frothing- 
ham. Siege of Boston, 160. 



7775] THE BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL 141 

possession of Dorchester Neck within the next twenty-four 
hours. Quickly following would have come their occupation 
of the Charlestown peninsula.^ And thereafter, even should 
they have found it impossible to make any further advance, 
they could have safely and easily maintained the town and 
harbor as a base for operations against both New England 
and New York. 

One comes next to Ward's judgment against large early 
reinforcement of Prescott's detachment, and his determina- 
tion to hold his center in full strength until the enemy had 
displayed his choice of attack. 

Whether we agree or disagree with him, the contingency 
upon which he based his judgment was at all events no fallacy, 
for the letters of General Howe — soon to replace Gage as 
English commander-in-chief — tell us that Cambridge was the 
main objective in his plan for raising the slege.^ 

It was impossible for Ward — or anyone else in the Ameri- 
can camp — to divine what proportion. If any, of the British 
strength would be sent over the Charlestown peninsula in the 
face of the American intrenchments, and what proportion 
by way of Lechmere's Polnt^ or Willis Creek. 

An attack by way of Lechmere's Point or Willis Creek 
was a very real peril. Washington also so regarded it when, 
nine months later, the American forces undertook the occu- 
pation of Dorchester Neck. We find him carefully avoiding 
the danger of unduly weakening his center, though the Amer- 
ican lines had by that time been greatly strengthened and 
Lechmere's Point had been converted into a strongly forti- 

* General Burgoyne to Lord Stanley, American Archives, 4th, II, 1094. 

* Howe's plan was, first to occupy Dorchester Neck and make an attack upon Rox- 
bury. Then "to go over with all we can muster" to the Charlestown peninsula and thence 
"either attack the Rebels at Cambridge; Or perhaps, if the Country admits of it, endeavor 
to turn that post: ... In either case, I suppose the Rebels will move from Cambridge; 
And that we shall take and keep possession of it." — General Howe to Lord Howe, June 
12, 1775, Proceedings of the Bunker Hill /Monument Association, 1907, 1 15. The same 
plan, in different words, appears in General Howe's letter to General Harvey, June 12, 
1775. Jhid., III. 

* See the quotation from Colonel Sargent's letter on page 130, note 14. 



142 ARTEMAS WARD \_Age 47 

fied position, equipped with some of the heavy Ticonderoga 
guns. 

I hesitate to refer to James Warren's criticism that Ward 
"never left his house" all day — repeated with variations 
forty-three and fifty years later by Dearborn^ and Sargent® — 
for to me it has always seemed trivial. It has, though, been 
so widely quoted that it cannot be ignored. 

One might indeed Indict the sentence itself for malicious 
intent to deceive. To many readers it has suggested a con- 
dition which has no foundation in fact. That Ward "never 
left his house" all day, might or might not signify a measure 
of the "callous Indifference" with which one hasty writer 
charged him, even If It meant that he had remained away 
from his post and stayed home to nurse the sickness which 
had seized him. But the "house" In which he stayed was both 
his own army headquarters and also that of the Committee 
of Safety — the very heart and center of the besieging force. 

It happens that James Warren's statement was not liter- 
ally true, for Daniel Putnam and David Townsend, calling 
at headquarters at different hours, both found Ward out on 
the military business of the day;'^ but I am quite willing to 
accept the statement that he was not away from headquar- 
ters for any considerable length of time on June 17, and I 
think that It can well be argued that headquarters was the 
proper and the very best place for him to be on that eventful 
day. It was essential that some one 'of high authority be 
there to receive reports and to give orders. 

There was a deplorable amount of confusion among the 
troops on the Charlestown peninsula and In the vicinity (ex- 
cepting always those holding the battle-line), but Ward, nec- 
essarily remaining in Cambridge until the landing of the 
English reinforcement had completed the disclosure of his 
opponent's plan of action, could not have reached the field In 

' Dearborn, An Account of the Battle of Bunker Hill. 

* See page 139, note. 

^ See pages 126 and 129. 



7775] THE BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL 143' 

time to have changed conditions there — even if (which is 
doubtful) he, or any other man, could have changed them to 
any great degree. 

And if he had left headquarters before the English com- 
mander had displayed his intention, he would have been tak- 
ing an entirely unjustifiable hazard. 

All of which seems very plain, yet apparently some of 
Ward's critics would have liked to see him put the last keg 
of powder in a coach and drive over to the Charlestown 
peninsula in order to make a complete show for the spectators 
in Boston. 



CHAPTER VIII 
June i8-Jiily j, 1775'- Age 47 

The American camp after the Battle of Bunker Hill. The election of 
George Washington as Commander-in-chief of the American 
forces. Artemas Ward commissioned as First Major-General; 
Charles Lee as Second Major-General. The arrival of Washing- 
ton and Lee at Cambridge. 

THE sudden shock of battle and the menace of a re- 
newed onslaught by the English redcoats had tempo- 
rarily cleared the surcharged political atmosphere of the 
camps, but the spirit of insubordination was still rife and for 
some hectic hours was heightened by poisonous rumors charg- 
ing treachery at Bunker Hill in some of the officers.^ The 
accusations were, however, quickly discredited^ and their 
venom as speedily dissipated, leaving a better feeling In their 
wake. 

Further relief proceeded from the handbills sent broad- 
cast by the Provincial Congress — with the authority, finally 
received, of the Continental Congress — for the election of 
representatives to a General Court to function "as near as 

^ Diary of Ezekiel Price, June 19, Massachusetts Historical Society Proceedings, VII, 
191. — "An opinion prevails among the Continental Army, that treachery was in some of 
the Continental Officers. A suspicion also arises among them that sand was mixt with 
the powder, and that the cartridges and ball being thus sent was with design: all which 
creates great uneasiness in the camp." 

Provincial Congress, June 20. — "Ordered, that Colonel Cushing, Major Perley, Colonel 
Prescott, Colonel Barrett, and Deacon Fisher, be a committee to inquire into the grounds 
of a report which has prevailed in the army, that there has been treachery in some of 
the officers ; and that, if they find that such report is without foundation, they bring in 
a resolve for quieting the minds of the people, in respect thereof." 

^ Diary of Ezekiel Price, June 20. — " ... all the reports of treachery were entirely 
without foundation, and propagated by the enemies to the cause, and weak, discon- 
tented men, and by some cowards who fled from the engagement and formed these lies 
to favour their escape from danger." 

144 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 145 

may be, to the spirit and substance of the [provincial] char- 
ter." 

The spreading of this call for the resumption of provin- 
cial government had been shortly preceded by the news that 
Connecticut had formally placed her troops under Ward's 
command; and was quickly followed by word that the thirteen 
colonies represented in the Continental Congress had united 
in action and had adopted both the rebellion and its army; 
and, next, that Rhode Island had put her troops also under 
Massachusetts control. 

These developments set increasingly strong checks upon 
camp malcontents, for they suggested and signified both a 
politically united New England and a politically united "Con- 
tinent" behind those in authority. And, fortunately for 
Massachusetts and the Revolutionary cause, the flames of 
anarchy died down and burned themselves out. Indiscipline 
still flourished, but sedition had passed. 

A new and confident military ardor also pervaded the 
ranks as a result of the battle.^ 

' Some writers have pictured the American forces as thrown into dismay by the loss 
of the Charlestown peninsula. To get oneself into the proper frame of mind to believe 
.this, one must discard the testimony of the men who lived and fought in those days! 

Both the project and its execution drew a certain quantity of censure, and there was 
hurry and fear among the non-combatanfs in nearby towns, but the typical American 
attitude was the very opposite of "dismay": 

"We remain in good spirits as yet, being well satisfied that where we have lost one 
they lost three." — Colonel Stariv, June 19, to the President of "the New Hampshire 
Provincial Congress. Nciu Hampshire Pro'vhiclal Papers, VII, 523. 

"Our Troops are in exceeding high spirits, & their Resolution increases, they long to 
speak with them again." — Wm. Williams, June 20. Frothingham, The Battle-Field of 
Bunker Hill, 42. 

"The ministerial troops gained the hill, but were victorious losers. A few more such 
victories, and they are undone." — Wm. Tudor, June 26, to John Adams. Frothingham, 
Siege of Boston, 396. 

"I wish we could sell them another hill at the same price. . . . Our people are in 
good spirits." — General Greene, June 28, to his brother Jacob Greene, Chairman of the 
Committee of Safety, Warwick, R. I. Johnson, Sketches of the Life of Nathauael 
Greene, I, 32. 

"I am glad to hear that the Number of killed & wounded on the side of the Enemy 
amounts to so many more than 1000. I dare say you would not grudge them every 
Hill near you upon the same terms." — Samuel Adams to James Warren, July 2. Pro- 
ceedings of the Bunker Hill Monument Association, 1898, 26. 

"The Continental army . . . were in higli spirits." — ^Diary of Ezekiel Price, June 20, 
Massachusetts Historical Society Proceedings, VII, 191. 

Letters printed in the newspapers breathe the same spirit. 



146 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 47 

Other vital problems still remained, however, for the 
battle had emphasized the need for powder, artillery, tents, 
clothing, etc. On the day following. Ward wrote to the 
Committee of Supplies voicing his "immediate want" of 
"large Ordnance, a Quantity of powder, and small Musket 
Balls";'* and on June 19 to the Provincial Congress say- 
ing, "I must earnestly entreat the Congress to furnish the 
train of artillery with a company of artificers immediately, as 
the army greatly suffers for want of them. This ought to 
have been one of the first establishments, and I hope the 
Congress will not delay the matter a day longer."^ 

Then again to the Committee of Supplies the very urgent 
reminder of the need for tents, blankets, etc., reproduced on 
the page opposite. 

On the same day (June 24) the Provincial Congress or- 
dered the dispatch of appeals to Connecticut, Rhode Island, 
and New Hampshire for an "immediate augmentation" of 
their troops. It declared that it had "the best grounds to 
suppose that, as soon as the enemy have recovered a little 
breath from their amazing fatigues of the seventeenth of 
June," and their "surprising losses" should be made up by 
the arrival of new troops, "which is almost daily taking 
place," they would make "the utmost efforts" to break the 
American lines and "strike general terror and amazement 
into the hearts of the inhabitants of the whole continent." 

But the English generals never, during all their remaining 
sojourn in Boston, sufficiently recovered from the "amazing 
fatigues" engendered by the "seventeenth of June" to feel 
any desire to again force the American lines I 

They did, however, hope to consummate their plan for the 
occupation of Dorchester Neck, and they set Friday or 
Saturday (June 23 or 24) for the purpose.^ But Ward, 

*Artcmas TFard MSS. 

^American Archives, 4th, II, 1028. 

' "I may therefore safely predict, that with our present Force, the 2n(l Divisn from 
Ireland not being yet arrived, we shall not do more than to possess these Heights 
[Breed's Hill and Bunker Hill] & the Dorchester-neck, wch Gen. Clinton will take 






<' 



u 



)^ ^7<ui:^y ^x».n. /:^n/ <*v^ oh^Y^^ei te ^^^ /f^-u^, .tO^ieA /««a^ 






From the original (6^ X 7J4) in the Maisachusetls Archives 

WARD'S DEMAND THAT THE TROOPS BE PROTECTED 
FROM THE WEATHER 



L' 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 147 

learning their intention, reinforced Thomas's division, and 
Gage reconsidered his determination and renounced the 
project.''' 

This same Saturday (the twenty-fourth) brought news of 
the Continental Congress election (June 15) of George 
Washington (lately "Colonel Washington of Virginia") to 
the supreme command of the American forces; that (June 
17) Ward had been made second in command, and Charles 
Lee, third. 

On June 17, also, the lesser, but very important, post of 
adjutant-general had been given to another English officer — 
Horatio Gates, a retired English major who had settled in 
the Shenandoah Valley, Virginia, after the peace of 1763. 

Advice of the appointments had been sent in letters by Han- 
cock andothers. Thoughintendedforofficialinformationonly,^ 

possession of, eitlier to morrow or en Saturday." — General Howe to Lord Howe, June 22, 
1775. Stopford-Sackv'dlc MSS., H; Proceedings of the Bunker Hill Monument Asso- 
ciation, 1907, 121. 

[June] "23d. . . . great talk of some expedition tomorrow ; the 63d rcgt and Batt. of 
Marines being order'd to Boston, and the flank companies of the 64th from the Castle." — 
Diary of a British officer, Atlantic Monthly, XXXIX, 551. 

^ June 24: "The expedition talked of was to attack Dorchester Hill, and was to 
have been today at 6 oclock in the morng. All the Troops on this side [Charlestown] 
were drawn out and paraded on the Hill [Bunker Hill] and some march'd into the 
road ; this was to alarm the Rebels on this side and keep off their attention ; but soon 
after we heard it was put off, the Genl hearing they had got intelligence and had rein- 
forced that place with 4000 men." — Diary of a British officer, Ihid. 

"Four days ago I received an order to command three armed vessels, and to put 
myself under the command of General Gage; as soon as I did I was ordered to be ready 
at six o'clock next morning to cover a part of some Troops which were to make an 
attack on the left side of Boston, and to flank a breastwork and a wood, which was 
supposed had a number of men in it ; but about seven o'clock General Clinton sent to me 
not to proceed till farther orders from him. Some little time after I was ordered up to 
General Howe's camp to lie with the vessels on his right, where I last night left them, 
having been relieved, as I had not been in bed for four nights. I found, since I came 
down, the reason of the attack not going on was, that the rebels knew of our coming, 
and had seven or eight thousand men ready to receive us. I own I could have wished 
it had went on, as I had placed the vessels in such a situation as must have mowed 
them down, and done great execution." — Extract of a letter from a British officer in 
Boston, June 26, 1775, American Archives, 4th, H, 1 107. 

* "I am under a strict Injunction not to Communicate the Doings of Congress, but 
two or three Circumstances having Taken place in Congress which affected our Army, 
indued me to ask Leave to mention them which I obtain'd with this positive Direction 
that at present they be not mentioned in the Newspapers which you will please observe." — 
John Hancock to Joseph Warren, June 18, 1775, Proceedings of the Bunker Hill Monu- 
ment Association, 1898, 22. 



J 



148 ARTEMAS WARD lAge 4^ 

It filtered through rapidly and became camp gossip within 
forty-eight hours.^ 

" It is unnecessary to re-tell the story of the appointment of 
Washington as commander-in-chief.^*^ Careful students no 
longer find in it any reflection upon Ward. They have read 
John Adams' testimony^^ and know that in the Congress 
which held the decision "the greatest number" were for Ward 
to head the continental armies, but that his title to first place 
was sacrificed by the New England statesmen to meet the 
overwhelming necessity of uniting the colonies. ^^ 

America's great good fortune was that, for once, the 
choice of expediency was also the best choice. During the 
first stages of the conflict Washington frequently proved his 
lack of military perspective and experience, but not all the 
seven years of the war developed another man as capable. 
He grew to great stature in the school of experience. 

° "We hear a chief officer is appointed, Gen. Washington of Virginia, to supersede 
in the command of the troops here." — June 26, 1775, Diary of Lieutenant-Colonel Storrs, 
Massachusetts Historical Society Proceedings, XIV, 86. 

^^ The choice of Washington satisfied the pride of the Southern delegates and dis- 
pelled their fear of a military Massachusetts dominating the other colonies. That was 
the preponderant motive underlying his nomination — but it was not the only one. The 
conclusion at which John Adams arrived was strengthened by several additional, and 
very important, points. To be acceptable to all of the provinces it was essential that 
the commander-in-chief selected be native-born, of proved courage, and of military 
prominence; or the troops of strange provinces might refuse to acknowledge him. He 
must be a man sufficiently aggressive politically to command the respect of the New 
England patriot leaders — civilian and other; yet he should also be moderate enough to 
ease the minds of the less ardent in the central colonies. It was desirable that he be of 
social importance, for the encouragement of the rather small proportion of the well- 
to-do on the patriot side. All of these requirements were combined with remarkable 
completeness in Washington's personality, character, career, and circumstances. 

'^^ Works of John Adams, II, 415-418; X, 162-165. 

*^John Adams and his companions fully realized how desperate was New England's 
need for the assistance of the other colonies. To continue unsupported the fight against 
Great Britain meant certain destruction. With the other colonies indififerent or (as 
perhaps some of them) actively loyal, the British forces — regulars and loyalist militia — 
could come to the attack from every side — and there was not enough powder in New 
England to carry the provincial armies through a single campaign. 

There were then no powder mills in New England ; and with the sea and surround- 
ing country under English control, no pou der could have been obtained from out- 
side. All the patriotism of New England's sons Mould have weighed but little 
against empty casks and empty horns: and to learn the trade of making powder while 
defending themselves against an empire, would have required more than human 
strength and ingenuity. 

A condition that, later, spelled serious danger for the united colonies would have 
meant the political annihilation of a detached group. 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 149 

And Charles Lee — what were his thoughts when the Con- 
gress reached its decision? Disgruntled and disappointed 
he was without a doubt, for he had failed to achieve his 
dream of American leadership. ^^ He had jockeyed himself 
so far to the front in popular esteem that a number of dele- 
gates had urged his name for the chief command; but not all 
his adroitness and ability had been sufficient to win that high 
prize. The Congress was filled with a superlative belief 
in his knowledge and skill, was anxiously eager to secure his 
services, and was imbued with sincere deprecation of colonial 
experience in the art of war; but a majority of the delegates 
drew back at the suggestion that the supreme command be 
placed in the hands of a foreign officer. 

Lee had, next, played for second place, but that also 
eluded him. In harmony's interest and for the quicker weld- 
ing of the colonies, the delegates had unanimously joined 
in the appointment of Washington as commander-in-chief, 
but, led by John Adams, those who had previously advocated 
Ward for that post refused to set his name aside again. 
Not even the magic of Lee's foreign service, nor their desire 
to gratify his demands, could prevail upon them to rank him 
above Ward. 

For third place, that of second major-general, Lee re- 
ceived the vote of the Congress, so he brushed aside his 
ultimatum of "either second or nothing" and accepted the 
commission. 

Two men between him and his ambition ! But still no 
reason to lose hope of making his dream come true 1 It is 
seldom that the general heading an army at the inception of 
a war is in the saddle when it ends. There were many pit- 
falls ahead that were likely to prove disastrous to inexperi- 
enced riders. Charles Lee might yet confound his old ene- 
mies in England by confronting them as America's leader! 

" 111 the month following the appointments, Lee declared that he might have con- 
sidered "at least the preferment given to General Ward over me as the highest indig- 
nity." — To General Thomas, July 23, 1775, Lee Papers, I, 197. As Washington was 
the only other officer placed over him, the inference is plain. 



ISO ARTEMAS WARD [^^^^7 

On June 26 the Congress delegated Benjamin Church 
(still high in Revolutionary councils, still unsuspected) and 
Moses Gill as a committee to repair to Springfield, there to 
receive Washington and Lee "with every mark of respect 
due to their exalted characters and stations" and "to pro- 
vide proper escorts for them, from thence, to the army before 
Boston." 

Three days later Ward gave "Washington" as parole 
and "Virginia" as countersign. This started a fresh 
set of rumors which before night had spread through the 
lines into Boston, telling of "Colonel Washington's being 
expected this day to take upon him the Command of the 
Rebel Army."" 

On the following day Ward received Hancock's two let- 
ters of June 22: one telling him of the appointment of 
Schuyler and Putnam as fourth and fifth major-generals, 
and of eight brigadier-generals; the other transmitting 
his commission as first major-general. The second letter 
is reproduced, together with Ward's acceptance, on the page 
opposite. ^^ 

Washington and Lee were on the same day met at Spring- 
field by the Provincial Congress escort. 

^^ Lieutenant-Colonel Kemble's Journal, Kemhle Papers, I, 45. 

" Ward's apprehension, expressed in his letter of acceptance, that some of the appoint- 
ments might create "uneasiness" was fully justified. Washington was much troubled by 
the ill feeling they excited. He informed the Continental Congress that "General Spencer 
[5th brigadier-general] was so much disgusted at the preference given to General Putnam 
[5th major-general] that he left the Army without visiting me, or making known his 
Intentions in any respect." In consequence, Washington held back the other commissions 
until receiving further advice, for he feared that, in the appointments of the brigadier- 
generals, the "postponing of General Thomas to Pomeroy and Heath [the placing of 
Thomas as 6th, with Pomeroy as ist and Heath as 4th], whom he has commanded, 
would make his continuance very difficult, and probably operate on his Mind, as the like 
Circumstance has done on that of Spencer." 

Though the commissions were held back, the news of the appointments had become 
public property and it affected Thomas as Washington had anticipated. 

Strong influence was brought to bear upon Thomas, for his resignation would have 
been a serious loss. Charles Lee was among those who urged him to remain in the 
service, invoking his patriotism in his country's hour of trial. It was in his exhortation 
to Thomas that Lee made his allusion to his being passed over in favor of both Wash- 
ington and Ward that is quoted on the preceding page, note 13. Thomas remained, and 
very shortly after received the continental appointment as first brigadier-general "in the 
room of General Pomeroy, who never acted under the commission sent to him." 






OJ..- 



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From the original (7;/. x 125/$), owned by the Massachusetts Historical Society 

PRESIDENT HANCOCK'S LETTER TRANSMITTING 

WARD'S COMMISSION AS FIRST MAJOR-GENERAL 

OF THE CONTINENTAL ARMY 
















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From the original (7^ x 12) in the Library of Congress 

WARD'S LETTER ACCEPTING HIS COMMISSION AS FIRST 
MAJOR-GENERAL OF THE CONTINENTAL ARMY 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 151 

Two days later, on the morning of Sunday, July 2, they 
reached Watertown. 

The Provincial Congress was ready for them with ad- 
dresses of welcome prepared and adopted at the session of 
the preceding day. The glamour cast by Lee may be noted 
even here: the address to Washington lacked nothing in re- 
spect or cordiality, but that to Lee displayed more personal 
enthusiasm. 

Upon James Warren as the new president of the Provin- 
cial Congress, succeeding Joseph Warren, who had died 
at Bunlcer Hill, devolved the chief honor of receiving Wash- 
ington in the provisional capital of the province. It was an 
unhappy augury for the future relationship of two men so 
dissimilar as the Massachusetts Puritan and the rich planter 
from Virginia, that from James Warren, General Ward's 
detractor — instead of from Dr. Joseph Warren, his friend- 
Washington should receive an advance impression and an 
advance judgment of the man he was to succeed. If Joseph 
Warren had lived, Washington would have continued on 
toward the American camp with a very different and much 
truer impression of Artemas Ward and his works. 

It was between twelve and one o'clock (some accounts say 
two o'clock) when Washington, weary from the journey and 
the ceremonies en route, rode quietly into the little town of 
Cambridge, which was to serve as his headquarters thence- 
forth so long as the British flag waved over the capital of 
Massachusetts,^^ 

'® Irving's Life of George Washiugton, First edition, I, 496 (different page number in 
other editions), says that "As he entered the confines of the camp the shouts of the 
multitude and the thundering of artillery gave note to the enemy beleaguered in Boston 
of his arrival." Lodge's George TFashtugton, I, 134, also greets him with the "booming 
of cannon." Other old style historians have similarly indulged their imaginations. 

All this is spurious. It is thus one writes of the arrival of the famed or conquering 
general — but Washington had not yet made the name or established the reputation by 
which we know him. The records of July 2, British and American alike, contain no 
reference to any cannonading at the time of Washington's arrival. The English firing 
(upon Roxbury) had ceased several hours earlier and there was none by the Americans. 

Even without these disproofs one would naturally regard such statements with sus- 
picion — Ward would not have ordered and Washington would not have desired the use 
of powder in complimentary salvos of artillery. The irreplaceable value of every grain 



152 ARTEMAS WARD l^ge 47 

There Is no record of how the newly arrived officers spent 
that Sunday afternoon and evening, but tradition has it that 
their first dinner at Cambridge — with Ward as host — was an 
affair of much joviality. ^^ Ward welcomed his successor, 
the new commander-in-chief, in the same spirit of whole- 
hearted unpretentious sincerity with which he had received 
the news of his appointment. 

The next day (which was "exceeding pleasant" in the morn- 
ing, but "towards noon, very warm"^^) Washington formally 
assumed the command. 

No eye-witness recorded the occasion despite its high 
historic significance, but Ward had arranged that it should 
be "attended with a great deal of grandeur." The troops 
had been "turned out early in the morning" to be "got 
in readiness to be reviewed" and there were "one and 
twenty drummers," all especially drilled "respecting their 
duty," and "as many fifers, beating and playing around the 
parade." ^^ 

was in every patriot mind, and the Provincial Congress resolution of June 26 had ex- 
plicitly echoed John Adams' admonition (to Elbridge Gerry, June 18, 1775, Austin's 
Lije of Gerry, I, 90) against any such consumption. 

" "In the long, low dining-room, fronting on the common, and separated from the 
parlor by a double vestibule, lighted by small heavily sashed windows on either side and 
opening out by another main door in that direction, Ward entertained Washington and 
the other generals soon after their arrival, the banquet, if not brilliant in its appoint- 
ments, having been enlivened, tradition tells us, by patriotic songs." — Amory, Old Cam- 
bridge and New, 23. 

"Washington . . . first dined at Cambridge with General Ward and his officers, — an 
occasion when all restraint appears to have been cast aside in the spontaneous welcome 
which was extended him. After dinner. Adjutant Gibbs, of Glover's, was hoisted (Eng- 
lish fashion), chair and all, upon the table, and gave the company a rollicking bachelor's 
song, calculated to make the immobile features of the chief relax. It was a generous, 
hearty greeting of comrades in arms. Glasses clinked, stories were told, and the wine 
circulated. Washington was a man; we do not question that he laughed, talked, and 
toasted with the rest." — S. A. Drake, Historic Fields and Mansions of Middlesex, 262 
(also, same page number, in the same work later published as Old Landmarks and His- 
toric Fields of Middlesex and Historic Mansions and Highivays around Boston). 

"Diary of Ezekiel Price, July 3, 1775, Massachusetts Historical Society Proceedings, 
VII. 194. 

^^ Ward's Order Booh, July 2, 1775; Paul hunt's Diary, July 3, 177S; letter of 
Lieutenant Joseph Hodgkins, July 3, 1775. Ipsivich Antiquarian Papers, June, 1S81. 

Many historians and multitudinous orators have pictured the camp as full of enthusiasm 
on Washington's assumption of the command. All such statements may be set aside, 
for such writers and speechmakers are again self-deluded by a wrong perspective. 

There was no such sentiment on July 3, 1775. It is probable that by that date every 



^7751 



THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 153 



New Englander had heard of "Washington of Virginia"- — and that some of them had 
from a much earlier period held him admiringly in mind. Further, having discussed 
among themselves, town-meeting style, the political exigencies of the situation, the rank 
and file had accepted the action of their representatives in the Continental and Provincial 
Congresses and were ready to receive Washington with deference and fair cordiality. 

But that is all one can say. There was no general enthusiasm — that was to come 
in after years when he had earned it by many long days and nights devoted to America's 
cause. No one was sufficiently impressed by his assumption of the command to send a 
letter to any newspaper, though events of much lesser moment were thus reported ; no 
one seems to have described the ceremony in any letter to family or friends ; and no 
diary recorded it. 

There are the references already quoted concerning the preparations for music and 
parade, but — of authentic material — nothing more. 

Most of the many diaries, memoirs, etc., tliat I have consulted pass both July 2 and 3 
without any reference to Washington. Some diarists noted his arrival — as Jonathan Car- 
penter (Original diary, owned, 1921, by N. L. Boyden, Randolph, Vt.), Noah Chapin 
(Original diary, Connecticut Historical Society), Reverend David Avery (Original diary — 
in one of the volumes owned by Hannah C. Partridge, Hartford, Conn.), Caleb 
Haskell (Diary), General Heath (Memoirs) , James Thacher (Journal) , Ezekiel 
Price (Diary, Massachusetts Historical Society Proceedings, VH, 194), James Stevens 
(Journal, Essex Institute Historical Collections, XLVHI, 49), Ezra Stiles (Literary 
Diary, I, 582) ; but all of these nevertheless pass July 3 without speaking of his 
installation. Carpenter records that he "took the command," but this evidently refers 
to his arrival, for the entry is of July 2. Several diaries specifically testify that on July 3 
there happened "Nothing new" or "Nothing remarkable" or "Nothing extraordinary" : 
as those of Caleb Haskell, Samuel Haws (Military Journals of Tilo Private Soldiers, 
60), John Kettell (Original diary, Frothingham Papers, 1630-1775, Massachusetts 
Historical Society), and James Stevens. 

Simms' I/tfc of Nathanael Greene, I, 33, states that "It was Greene who, according 
to the usage of the time, welcomed Washington to the army in a public address," but 
this statement is incorrect. Greene's own testimony in his letter of July 4, 1775 (Geo. 
W. Greene's Life of Nathanael Greene, I, 99), is as follows: "I sent a detachment today 
of two hundred men, commanded by a colonel, lieutenant-colonel, and major with a letter 
of address to welcome his Excellency to camp. The detachment met with a very gracious 
reception, and his Excellency returned me a very polite answer, and invitation to visit 
him at his headquarters." 

Lodge in his George Washington, I, 134, quotes Dr. Thacher to lend verisimilitude 
to his story of the installation: "The next day he rode forth in the presence of a great 
multitude, and the troops having been drawn up before him, he drew his sword beneath 
the historical elm-tree and took command of the first American army. 'His Excellency,' 
wrote Dr. Thacher in his journal, 'was on horseback in company with several military 
gentlemen. It was not difficult to distinguish him from all others. He is tall and well 
proportioned, and his personal appearance truly noble and majestic' " But the quotation 
from Dr. Thacher is of an encounter of July 20, seventeen days later (Thacher's Mili- 
tary Journal) . 

In conclusion, one may read with some curious interest the following alleged recollec- 
tion of the ceremony published, 1883, in Secomb's History of the Town of Amherst, 
N. H., 371. The account had been given to the author forty or so years earlier by 
Andrew Leavitt, a very old soldier, then about ninety years of age. 

"The officers placed their men in as good shape as they could, but they were a motley 
looking set, no two dressed alike. Some were armed with fowling pieces, some with 
rifles, others with muskets without bayonets. When all was in readiness, Washington 
and his staff advanced to the square prepared for their reception. He was a large 
noble looking man, in the prime of life, and was mounted on a powerful black horse 
over which he seemed to have perfect control. 

"After a short address to the soldiers, he took from his pocket a Psalm book, from 
which he read the one hundred and first Psalm (another account says it was then sung 
by the soldiers to the tune of Old Hundred)." 



CHAPTER IX 

Criticisms of Ward as Commander-in-chief 

I HAVE said that I have no quarrel with those who cen- 
sure either the conception or the execution of the battle 
of Bunker Hill, and I make the most generous allowances 
for overheated and overstated assertions and Insinuations in- 
spired by it, whether of contemporary or later date; but I 
do most decidedly protest against the manner In which, con- 
cerning other periods of Ward's tenure as commander-in- 
chief, contemporary testimony has been distorted and mis- 
used to the disadvantage of his reputation. 

Bancroft promulgated the theory that Ward was incom- 
petent as commander-in-chief;^ and it has been adopted by 
many historians, both American and English. But its founda- 
tions are fictitious, and examination crumbles them to nothing. 

The witnesses marshaled by Bancroft were Joseph 
Warren, Elbridge Gerry, and James Warren. One finds 
that the first two did nol testify against Ward; and that the 
third, though violently anti-Ward, became indirectly his best 
witness. 

This Is not the only instance in which Bancroft sacrificed 
historical accuracy to the zest of portraying a special view- 
point and nullified the value of his great historical labors by 
incorrectness of statement or quotation — but that fact has not 
saved Ward's reputation from being cruelly wounded. 

The most serious Injustice has been that wrought by Ban- 
croft's declaration that Joseph Warren, one of the finest 

* Bancroft's History of the United States, early editions, VII, 321, 388-389, 405; 
Centenary editions, IV, 541, 589-590, 602; "Author's last revision," IV, 173. 

154 



7775] AS COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF 155 

characters of his time, held but a poor opinion of General 
Ward as commander-in-chief: that he noted his inefficiency 
for the post, and advised his supersession. These statements 
have carried much weight because intimate association gave 
Warren full opportunity for judgment — but they are entirely, 
utterly untrue. 

Especially insidious is the perversion of the Joseph War- 
ren letter of May 17, 1775, to Samuel Adams which accom- 
panied the Provincial Congress letter of May 16 to the 
Continental Congress (both of which letters I have cited in 
an earlier chapter). - 

The Provincial Congress letter, also signed by Joseph 
Warren (as President pro tem.), was devoted chiefly to 
voicing the serious need for the reestablishment of civil gov- 
ernment in Massachusetts and the urgent Massachusetts de- 
sire for the advice and cooperation of the other colonies. 

It concluded with the following request that the Conti- 
nental Congress assume the direction of the army: 

"As the Army collecting from different colonies, is for the 
general defence of the rights of America, we would beg 
leave to suggest to your consideration the propriety of your 
taking the regulation and direction of it, that the operations 
may more effectually answer the purpose designed." 

It would be easy to expand on the numerous reasons — 
political as well as military — that rendered both desirable 
and essential the supreme control by the Continental Con- 
gress of the separate independent colonial armies raised, and 
being raised, in defense of a common cause; but, in so far 
as it affects the point under discussion, the Important fact is 
that the Provincial Congress letter did not express any 
lack of faith in Ward's ability, nor did it request or sug- 
gest putting any one In his place. On the contrary, the Pro- 
vincial Congress immediately followed it by preparing a 
formal commission for Ward as commander-in-chief of the 
Massachusetts forces. It is Its own authority which it offers 

^ See page no, note 27 ; also pages 1 13— 1 14. 



156 ARTEMAS WARD VAge 47 

to surrender. It suggests that the Continental Congress (of 
all the colonies), instead of the Provincial Congress (of only 
Massachusetts), ought to be empowered with the general 
direction of the army. 

This point being very clear, Bancroft had recourse to the 
Joseph Warren letter referred to — that of May 17 to Samuel 
Adams, which accompanied the Provincial Congress letter. 
Bancroft described Warren's letter as "interpreting" the 
conclusion of the Provincial Congress letter as a request that 
the Continental Congress take the command by appointing 
a generalissimo, and succeeded this by declaring that the 
generalissimo whom Warren (and others) desired was 
Washington.'^ These statements follow — are in the same 
paragraph with — his assertions that Warren had observed 
"the incompetency of Ward for his station" and that "every 
hour made it more imperative that he be superseded." 

Nothing could be more completely inaccurate than the im- 
pression thus created. There is not in Warren's letter of 
May 17 — nor in any other letter by him — any statement or 
suggestion, direct or indirect, that asperses In even the slight- 
est degree either Ward or his ability; nor the expression of 
any wish for Washington or any other man to fill Ward's 
place. One finds, instead, direct testimony to Ward's hold 
upon the troops — for Warren fears that, despite its self- 
evident desirability, the assumption of the general direction 
of the army by the Continental Congress may cause trouble 
among the Massachusetts men, as they may object to having 
anyone — whether a continental committee or a continental 
generalissimo — placed in command over, or in place of. 
Ward; and so he sends the following warning: 

"I would just observe that the application made to you 

'Bancroft's History of the United States, early editions, VII, 388-389; Centenary 
editions, IV, 589—590. His "last revision," 1884, dropped his earlier citation of 
Joseph Warren, Gerry, and James Warren as witnesses to Ward's "incompetency," but it 
continued the charge (IV, 173) and carried a new inaccuracy — the direct assertion that 
(IV, 203) Joseph Warren's letter of May 17 interpreted the Provincial Congress 
letter of May 16 "as a request that the continent should 'take the command of the 
army by appointing Washington as its generalissimo.' " 



7775] AS COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF 157 

respecting the taking the regulation of this army into your 
hands, by appointing a committee of war, or taking the com- 
mand of it by appointing a generalissimo, is a matter, I 
think, must be managed with much delicacy," 

Bancroft (and many of those following him) adopted 
from Warren's letter both the idea of the "delicacy" re- 
quired, and the word itself — but they misapplied it. They 
have made it appear that Ward's "private virtues" consti- 
tuted one of the chief reasons for using "delicacy" in super- 
seding him. The context shows, however, that the "delicacy" 
advised had nothing to do with any possibility of reflecting 
upon his "private virtues" or reputation, or of hurting his 
feelings, but was essential in the choosing of either a com- 
mittee or a generalissimo to assume from his hands the reins 
of chief command lest the troops should balk at the orders 
of such a committee or generalissimo and defy their or his 
authority. For, continuing, it was then that Warren re- 
marked: 

"Unless great care is taken, some dissentions may arise in 
the army, as our soldiers, I find, will not yet be brought to 
obey any person of whom they do not themselves entertain a 
high opinion." 

With the complete letter before one,^ there is no possi- 
bility of misunderstanding. Political conditions direct the 
offer of the supreme command of the army to the Continental 
Congress, but its assumption must be very "delicately" 

* Here is the full literal text of Joseph Warren's letter of May IJ, /"/J." 
"Yesterday Dr. Church was appointed to wait on the Continental Congress, with the 
address from this Congress, which renders it unnecessary for me to write so perticularly 
to you as I intended, as you will have from him an Exact state of Affairs, viva Voce. 
I would just observe that the Application made to you respecting the taking the Regu- 
lations of this Army into your Hands, by appointing a Committee of War, or takeing 
the Command of it by appointing a Generalissimo, is a Matter I think must be managed 
with much Delicacy. I am a little suspicious unless great care is taken, some Dissen- 
tions may arise in the Army, as our Soldiers I find will not yet be brought to obey any 
Person of whom they do not themselves entertain an High Opinion. Subordination is 
absolutely necessary In an Army; but the Strings must not be drawn too tight at first. 
The Bands of Love & Esteem must be principally relied on amongst Men who know 
not of any Distinction but what arises from some superior Merit. I know your Prudence 
and thorough Knowledge of our Countrymen, their many Virtues and their few Faults. — 
The matter of taking up Government I think cannot occasion much debate, if the South- 



158 ARTEMAS WARD \.Age 47 

handled to avoid offending the Massachusetts men assembled 
under Ward's command. 

That political conditions constituted the controlling im- 
pulse is further clinched by the fact that Warren's first 
reference is not to a "generalissimo" but to a continental 
"Committee of War" as the chief military executive. ° 

If he had meant more — if he had felt that the cause was 
suffering from Ward's continuance — he would not have hesi- 
tated to so express himself to Samuel Adams, for he and 
Adams were very close friends.® 

Consider, next, Elbridge Gerry — another of the three men 
cited by Bancroft as having observed the "incompetency of 
Ward." His views and testimony on the army command and 
the military situation are in his letter of June 4, 1775, to 
the Massachusetts delegates in the Continental Congress. 
This letter has been widely quoted and misquoted, but not 
so heavily employed as Joseph Warren's of May 17, because 
it Is improbable that it reached Philadelphia in time to have 
had any influence on John Adams' sudden determination to 
achieve the coup d'etat which resulted in the election of 
Washington to the post of commander-in-chief. 

An impartial reader vainly seeks in Gerry's letter for any 
reflection on Ward. 

ern Colonies have any Apprehensions from the Northern Colonies, they surely must 
now be for an Establishment of Ci-vil Government here, for as an Army is now necessary, 
or is taking the Field, it is obveous to every one, if they are without Controul, a military 
Government must certainly take Place; and I think I cannot see a Question with them 
to determine which is most to be feared, a military, or a civil Government. 

I am Dear Sir with great Esteem, Your most Obedient Servant, 

Jos. Warren." 

The original (May 14—17, 1775) is among the Samuel Adams Papers, New York 
Public Library. A copy edited to modern capitalization, punctuation, etc., is in Frothing- 
ham's Life of Joseph JJ'arren, 485. 

" The manner of the Continental Congress's adoption and regulation of the army 
proved to be fundamentally different from a widely prevalent idea of a continental 
"Committee of War" or "generalissimo" which would permit the continued existence of 
the various colonial armies under their own commanders-in-chief. Under such a "Com- 
mittee of War," Washington would have been commander-in-chief of the Virginian 
forces; Ward of the Massachusetts; Schuyler of the New York. Under the alternative, 
Washington would probably have held the double role of continental generalissimo and 
Virginian commander-in-chief. 

'Wells, Life of Samuel Adams, II, 3 1 3-3 14; Frotliingham, Life of Joseph fFarren, 
27, 525 note. 



7775] AS COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF 159 

After emphasizing the lack of money and gunpowder, and 
the vital necessity for the reestablishment of government, 
Gerry says : 

"We want also a regular general to assist us in disciplining 
the army, which in twelve months' time, and perhaps less, by 
frequent skirmishes may be brought to stand against any 
troops, however formidable they may be, with the sounding 
names of Welsh fusileers, grenadiers, etc." 

But this cannot be accepted as evidence against Ward 
unless one wishes to decry every colonial officer, including 
Washington himself. A "regular general" — i.e., a profes- 
sional soldier — must necessarily, at that time, have been of 
European training; and the man whom Gerry had in mind 
(as one discovers in his next sentence) was the Englishman 
Charles Lee. 

A "regular general"— one versed in the training and dis- 
ciplining of large numbers of men — was certainly needed; 
but not only during Ward's tenure as commander-in-chief. 
Such experience was as prime an essential under Washington 
as under Ward. Hence the great value attached to the ser- 
vices of Charles Lee and, even so late as the winter of 1777- 
1778, the impelling need for the organization and drill, in- 
structions and reforms instituted by the Prussian general 
Steuben in Washington's headquarters army.'^ 

It is aftc7' his reference to Charles Lee and his acknowl- 
edgment that "the pride of our people would prevent their 
submitting to be led by any general not an American," that 

'' A further reference to General Steuben, the conditions he found, etc., appears on 
pages 172-173, note 14. 

It is important that the student bear in mind that slighting references by either con- 
temporary or later writers should be regarded only so far as they are supported by 
facts. If unsupported statements are to be accepted, one may well be tempted to push 
the Revolutionary records from him with a sigh for the ability and character of the 
founders of the United States — for all of tlie leaders of that eventful period were sub- 
jected to scathing abuse. 

The criticisms of Ward are matched by similar criticisms of Washington. We find 
Washington accused of lack of decision and initiative — the count made by several his- 
torians against Ward. We find the same charges against the discipline of the men under 
Washington that were made against the army under Ward — even to invidious com- 
parison, praising by contrast a subordinate officer. 

It has always been found easy to abuse the man in command 1 



i6o ARTEMAS WARD VAge47 

Gerry makes his much-quoted reference to Washington — as 
follows : 

"I should heartily rejoice to see this way the beloved 
Colonel Washington, and do not doubt the New England 
generals would acquiesce In showing to our sister colony Vir- 
ginia, the respect, which she has before experienced from the 
continent, in making him generalissimo." 

Thus we again sense the strong impulse for political unity. 
Gerry holds Washington in very high esteem, but the reason 
given for the New England commanders' expected acquies- 
cence is neither the feeling of any imperative need for Wash- 
ington as commander-in-chief, nor any dissatisfaction with 
Ward. It is a matter of deference to Virginia — showing to 
her "the respect which she has before experienced from the 
continent." 

Gerry adds, "This is a matter in which Dr. Warren agrees 
with me." Here is, even at second-hand, Joseph Warren's 
only expression bearing upon Washington as generalissimo, 
and we find it presented as of political inspiration — not con- 
ceived by distrust of Ward's ability but having for its object 
the gratification of Virginia and the closer welding of the 
colonies. 

Furthermore, in Gerry's letter, even the expressed great 
necessity for the reestablishment of civil government, and the 
desire for a "regular general" and George Washington, are 
subordinate points — the chief need is for assistance by am- 
munition and money. If they could be furnished, the writer 
felt no doubt of the result, even without other continental 
aid. "A full supply of these," he declared, "would render 
Lord North and his myrmidons as harmless as they are in- 
famous." ^ 

^ Belozv is I lie jiill text of Gerry's Irllcr of June 4, 1775 {''d'lted to modern capitaU- 
zatlon) : 

"A pul)lic express for your honorable body gives me opportunity to hand you informa- 
tion of the affairs of this province. From the confusion, in which the engagement at 
Lexington threw the people, they are now beginning to recover, and I hope by the 
speedy assistance of some form of government that the measures, which will be neces- 
sary for defence, will not only be practicable, but executed here with success. The 



n75\ 



AS COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF i6i 



So disappear the main foundations of the charge, so in- 
correctly reported and so carelessly perpetuated, that his con- 
temporaries considered Ward deficient as commander-in- 
chief. One finds nothing of the sort by Joseph Warren,^ nor 

spirit of the people is equal to our wishes, and if they continue as they began, it will 
be as familiar to fight as to pursue the dangers of the ocean. We want assistance by 
ammunition and money. A full supply of these would render Lord North and his 
myrmidons as harmless as they are infamous. We have stripped the seaports of canvass 
to make tents ; and it is of great importance to possess ourselves of about five hundred 
pieces of ravens duck to keep the soldiers in health. I should be glad if the bearer 
could obtain it on the credit of our vote, as we want all our specie to send out of the 
government for other purposes ; but I am doubtful whether you can assist us in this 
matter although very important, as the great objects of your attention must take up your 
whole time. 

"Government is so essential that it cannot be too soon adopted ; and although no 
argument can be necessary to convince you of so plain a truth, yet it may not be amiss 
to hint a matter which can only be discovered by being where it has taken place. The 
people are fully possessed of their dignity from the frequent delineation of their rights, 
which have been published to defeat the ministerial party in their attempt to impress 
them with high notions of government. They now feel rather too much their own 
importance, and it requires great skill to produce such subordination as is necessary. 
This takes place principally in the army ; they have affected to hold the military too 
high, but the civil must be first supported, and unless an established form of govern- 
ment is provided, it will be productive of injury. Every day's delay makes the task 
more arduous. 

"We want also a regular general to assist us in disciplining the army, which in 
twelve months' time, and perhaps less, by frequent skirmishes may be brought to stand 
against any troops, however formidable they may be, with the sounding names of Welsh 
fusileers, grenadiers, etc. And although the pride of our people would prevent their 
submitting to be led by any general not an American, yet I cannot but think that general 
Lee might be so established as to render great service by his presence and councils with 
our officers. I should heartily rejoice to see this way the beloved Colonel Washington, 
and do not doubt the New England generals would acquiesce in showing to our sister 
colony Virginia, the respect, which she has before experienced from the continent, 
in making him generalissimo. 

"This is a matter in which Dr. Warren agrees with me, and we had intended to 
write you jointly on the affair. 

"The letter from our joint committees and the generals to the congress will come 
before you, and nothing further is necessary on this head." — Austin, L'lje oj Elbridge 
Gerry, I, 77-79- 

'It is of curious interest to note in how many different ways, and in what strained 
manners, the name of Dr. Warren has been used to detract from Ward's reputation — 
despite the fact that in life the two men were warm friends and held each other in mutual 
esteem. For example: 

Avery's History of the United States, V, 263, says: "Ward was not energetic enough 
to satisfy the provincial congress, and, on the fourteenth of June, the more active Warren 
was made the second major-general of the Massachusetts forces." 

Viewed from a competent knowledge of the acts of the Provincial Congress, Avery's 
comment reads as an attempt to invent a piece of contemporary testimony against General 
Ward! 

On June 13, an election was held with the understanding that the person named 
should be first major-general. But Dr. Warren was not chosen, the post going to 
John Whitcomb, a man fourteen er fifteen years older than Ward. The next day, the 
election for second major-general installed Dr. Warren. 

By Avery's comment, one must judge that if a commander-in-chief is noticeably lack- 



1 62 ARTE MAS WARD {.Age 47 

by Gerry, nothing beyond the universal Massachusetts desire 
for, and need of, continental support; to obtain which, one 
and all of those good Bay State patriots — Ward himself, 
Joseph Warren, the two Adamses — as others — were ready to 
sacrifice the pride of personal position; were ready to, and 
did, as occasion demanded, stand aside, or accept or resign 
responsibility: whichever way could best serve their country. 
By elimination we have come to the head of the stream — 
James Warren of Plymouth, the only one remaining of the 
three men cited by Bancroft, and the true source and foun- 
tainhead. There is no mistaking James Warren's attitude. 
He was not only Ward's most malicious detractor — he was 
also an extremely successful detractor; for his calumnies^" 

ing in energy, the specific remedy is to appoint a more elderly ^ri/-assistant and an active 
xffo»(/-assistant. Unless Ward's lack of energy became noticeable only between June 13 
and June 14 1 

The truth is of course that some one had to be elected second major-general, whether 
or not Ward was energetic. 

''^^ James Warren to John Adams, June 20, 1775: "Had our brave men, posted on 
Ground injudiciously at first taken, had a Lee or a Washington instead of a General 
destitute of all military Ability and Spirit to command them, it is my Opinion the day 
would have terminated with as much Glory to America as the 19th of April. This is 
our great IVIisfortune, and is remediless from any other quarter than yours. We dare 
not superceed him here — it will come well from you, and really merits your attention." 
— Warren-Adams Letters, I, 63 ; and elsewhere. 

James Warren to Samuel Adams, June 21, 1775' "Fine fellows you know our 
Countrymen are and -want nothing but a general of spirit and abilities to make them 
a fine army, all our Efforts which are many cannot supply that defect, yours must 
do it. could you believe, he never left his house on Saturday last; I shall add no more. 
I wish that was the worst of it." The words italicized have been struck out, by a later 
hand, from the original letter in the New York Public Library (Samuel Adams Papers). 
The full text, in modernized form, is given in Massachusetts Historical Society Proceed- 
ings, XIV, 81 ; and elsewhere. 

James Warren to John Adams, June 27, 1775: "I can't but hope you will make 
some suitable provision for our General Thomas. Hk merits in the military way have 
surprised us all. I can't describe to you the odds between the two camps. While one 
has been spiritless, sluggish, confused and dirty, I mean where General Putnam and 
our Friend Warren's influence have not had their effects ; the other has been spirited, 
active, regular and clean." — Warren-Adams Letters, \, 68. 

James Warren's charges do not lend themselves satisfactorily to critical dissection 
because of their sweeping generality and indefinite innuendo — lack of "military ability" ; 
"I wish that was the worst of it," etc. They contain no specific point for analysis ex- 
cept the assertion that Ward "never left his house" on June 17, which is discussed on 
pages 142—143. They are also affected by consideration of the writer's career and charac- 
ter. James Warren was a man of marked ability in some lines (he succeeded Joseph 
Warren as President of the Provincial Congress ; and Washington, later, wished him to 
accompany the army to New York as paymaster-general), but he never took any military 



7775] AS COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF 163 

have pursued their object living and dead for several genera- 
tions; have been fostered and nurtured and handed down 
even to this day. But, praise be, some measure of dramatic 
justice has also lain in wait, for he unintentionally left behind 
him high tribute to Ward's standing and influence among 
both the rank and file of the army and its officers, for, as I 
have noted in an earlier chapter,^^ it was James Warren who 
testified that ''we dare not superceed him here." 

To this testimony from the third president of the Provin- 
cial Congress, and Ward's enemy (writing after the Battle 
of Bunker Hill), following that of Joseph Warren, the 
second president of the Provincial Congress and Ward's 
friend, I may add the esteem with which he was regarded by 
both Samuel Adams ^^ and John Adams — the latter testify- 
ing and recording that he had much to do to excuse himself, 
that many arguments were necessary to convince his friends 
that patriotism had demanded such a sacrifice "of all our 

part in any Revolutionary, or any other, campaign; and never exhibited any military apti- 
tude or knowledge. In personal disposition, furthermore, he was inclined to petulancy — • 
and was querulously complainant under an adverse vote. On February 14, 1776 (to 
Samuel Adams, Massachusetts Historical Society Proceedings, XIV, 281), he complained 
that the Council had rejected his (assembly) election to the post of second major-general 
of the militia "in a manner as ungracious and indelicate as Bernard or Hutchinson would 
have done," adding, "I have serious thoughts of quitting my civil commission and be- 
come an independent man." And he was so great a stickler for a point of personal 
precedence that he resigned the post when it was later given to him because of a fancied 
indignity in a command assigned (page 245). 

I have not come across the key to James Warren's animosity toward Ward ; but 
prejudice, even if it were nowhere else shown, is portrayed by the manifest unfairness 
of his letter of June 27, 1775, to John Adams. It may have been easy to deter- 
mine the zone of Putnam's influence if his reference to Putnam was intended to 
apply only to Putnam's own, or to Spencer's, Connecticut men, but there could' have 
been no such zone to credit to Dr. Warren for he at no time exercised a military com- 
mand (he was killed at Bunker Hill on the third day after his appointment as second 
Massachusetts major-general). James Warren's method was apparently to attribute 
the good spots to Dr. Warren and charge the bad ones to General Ward ! 

" See page 112. 

" Samuel Adams promptly rebuked the criticisms (presumably including James War- 
ren's attack on Ward) directed against "some of our Generals" following Bunker Hill. 
"My dear Sir," he wrote to James Warren, June 28, "take Care lest Suspicions be car- 
ried to a dangerous Length. Our Army have behavd valiantly. There may have 
been an Error; but that Error may have proceeded not from a Want of Spirit but a Want 
of Judgment." — Tfarrcn- Adams Letters, I, 69. And a few days later he was writing 
most cordially to Ward, wishing him "a still greater share of laurels" than the success- 
ful conduct of the siege had already brought him.- — July 6, 1775, original letter 
owned (1921) by Agnes Ward White, Parkersburg, W. Va. 



1 64 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 47 

feelings to the union of the colonies" as the placing of 
Washington above Ward — for Ward was a "commander-in- 
chief universally esteemed, beloved, and confided in by his 
army and country." ^^ 

Why, in the face of such overwhelming evidence, should 
it have been considered necessary to belittle a man who 
labored so faithfully for his province and his country? 
Washington's fame did not require the contrast depicted — 
his figure is far too great to need a false background. It is 
consequently not easy to understand why Bancroft employed 
his talents as writer and historian to strip the hard-earned 
laurels from the brow of an earlier son of his own state. In 
so doing, he not only perpetuated the work of Artemas 
Ward's first and chief detractor — he also robbed Massachu- 
setts of the finest, purest part of the honor that is due her for 
having placed the fate of all the colonies in Washington's 
hands. 

Bancroft made a great point of his assertion that Massa- 
chusetts asked for Washington as commander-in-chief, but 
failed to see that the plain truth of the reason for, and the 
manner of, asking was in conception and purpose infinitely 
higher and stronger and nobler than his own specially-staged 
version. It is not a pretty picture that he conjures up — 
Massachusetts believing her commander-in-chief to be ineffi- 
cient and yet afraid to remove him, asking the Continental 
Congress to please do so and take charge of her army for 
her! The truth is infinitely different: it discloses a divine 
blend of courage and patriotism worthy of the strong souls 
that led In the Old Bay State. It shows Massachusetts fully 
holding her own against an English army and proudly satis- 
fied with the commander-in-chief born and bred on her own 
soil, but her spokesmen offering his abnegation — and their 
own — as they had already offered and risked all else, on the 
altar of patriotism. 

^^ Works of John Adams. X, l66. 



CHAPTER X 

July ^, lyj ^-January 75, ijj6: Age 47-48 

The siege after Washington's arrival. Ward in command of the Right 
Wing. Incidents of the siege. 

WASHINGTON held his first formal council of war 
on July 9. Present to confer with him were Major- 
Generals Ward, Charles Lee, and Putnam; Adjutant-General 
Gates; and Brigadier-Generals Thomas, Heath, and Greene. 
It probably galled Lee and Gates not a little that native 
officers now sat at the head of the table. It had been differ- 
ent in the old days of the French war — which they all 
remembered well, for both Lee and Gates had fought with 
Washington at Monongahela ; and Lee, as we have seen, 
had fought also with Ward at Ticonderoga. 

The council unanimously decided to maintain the posts 
taken under General Ward and also agreed not to attempt 
"to take possession of Dorchester Point ^ nor to oppose the 
enemy if they should attempt to possess it." It estimated 
that an army of "at least 22,000" was necessary to maintain 
the siege — 5000 more than the existing total enrollment and 
7500 more than the number of those returned as "fit for 
duty." It directed the commander-in-chief to apply to the 
Massachusetts Provincial Congress for temporary reinforce- 
ments, and ordered a campaign to stimulate recruiting. 
Weld's Hill, in the rear of the Roxbury positions, was chosen 

^ I.e., Dorchester Neck. The title of Dorchester Point (or, briefly, "the Point"), later 
specifically applied to that part facing Castle Island, was then frequently employed 
to designate the entire peninsula. 

165 



i66 ARTEMAS WARD \.Age47 

as a rendezvous in the event of the army being dispersed by 
a British attack. 

On the following day Washington reported to the Conti- 
nental Congress, enclosing a record of the proceedings of 
the council. "Considering," he said, "the great Extent of 
Line, and the nature of the Ground, we are as well secured 
as could be expected in so short a Time and under the 
Disadvantages we labour." He further testified that one of 
the principal reasons for the decision to maintain the posts 
that had been "form'd with so much labor" was the "Uncer- 
tainty of finding a Place in all Respects so capable of making 
astand."2 

To Richard Henry Lee he wrote on the same day, "I 
should not, I think, have made choice of the present posts, 
in the first instance," but he added, "I believe the communicai 
tion between the town and country could not have been so 
well cut off without them." In this letter also he acknowl- 
edged that "much labor" had "been bestowed in throwing 
up lines, and making redoubts."^ 

Washington continued the three-divisions plan of the army. 
On July 22 he assigned the largest division, that of the right 
wing, to Ward; the left wing to Charles Lee; and the 
center, under his personal supervision, to Putnam. 

Ward, three days later, rode over to Roxbury to assume 
his new command. The occasion was made one of ceremony. 
Five regiments were "marched towards Cambridge" to meet 
him and "waited upon" him into Roxbury.^ 

The right wing comprised the Roxbury positions and their 
"southern dependencies." Its northerly lines held the main- 
land base of Boston Neck. Its easterly lines stretched across 
the mainland base of the Dorchester peninsula and, by pick- 
ets, out on the Neck itself. By detachments and special 

° Ford, JFr't tings of Washington, III, 10. 
' Ibid., 23. 

* Journal of Samuel Haws, Military Journals of Ttvo Private Soldiers, 62 ; Diary ef 
Ensign Nathaniel Morgan, Connecticut Historical Society Collections, VII, 103. 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 167 

commands, it later extended to a number of points along the 
coast: easterly to Squantum, HIngham, and Cohasset; and, 
for a time, southerly to Plymouth. Its strongest posts were 
the "Lower" and "High" forts. The Lower Fort commanded 
the Roxbury, or Boston Neck, road. It extended about 400 
feet north and south and averaged nearly 300 feet in width, 
following on three sides the natural lines of rock. High 
Fort, southerly of the Lower Fort, was a quadrangular work, 
about 200 feet square, with bastions at each angle.^ 

The division under the new alignment was manned by 
twelve regiments of Massachusetts and Connecticut men, in 
two brigades under Generals Thomas and Spencer. 

Roxbury was at that time still "a suburban village, with a 
single narrow street, and dotted with farms, many of which 
were yet held by the descendants of the original proprietors. 
. . . The business of the town was concentrated in Rox- 
bury Street, the sole thoroughfare to Boston, through which 
[in normal times] as through a tunnel, crowded all the sur- 
plus produce of the country."^ 

Ward's headquarters was In the mansion "built about the 
year 1723, by Col. Francis Brinley, upon the estate of 
eighty acres formerly Palsgrave Alcock's," and "styled by 
its owner, 'Datchet House,' having been modelled after the 
family seat of the Brinleys, at Datchet, England.""^ It was 
at the time known as the Brinley Place, or "Pierpont Castle," 
deriving its latter name from its purchase in 1773 by Robert 
Pierpont, a Boston merchant. There is much vivid descrip- 
tion of It In a little volume entitled "Fannie St. John," by 
Emily Pierpont Delesdernier. 

"It was situated," she wrote, "in the midst of a large 
domain of park and wooded hills, and presented a picture 
of grandeur and statellness not common In the New World. 

^ High Fort Observatory, Highland Park, today stands guard on its site, and well 
repays a visit. The inscriptions on the rail of the Observation Balcony balustrade direct 
the eye to many points of historic interest. 

^Memorial History of Boston, HI, 571. 

^ Drake, The Toivn of Roxbury, 327. 



i68 ARTEMAS WARD VAge 47 

There were colonnades, and a vestibule whose massive 
mahogany doors, studded with silver, opened into a wide hall, 
where tessellated floors sparkled under the light of a lofty 
dome of richly painted glass. Underneath the dome two 
cherubs carved in wood extended their wings, and so formed 
the center, from which an immense chandelier of cut glass 
depended. Upon the floor beneath the dome there stood 
a marble column, and around it ran a divan formed of cush- 
ions covered with satin of Damascus of gorgeous coloring. 
Large mirrors with ebony frames filled the spaces between the 
grand staircases at either side of the hall of entrance. All 
the paneling and woodwork consisted of elaborate carving 
done abroad, and made to fit every part of the mansion where 
such ornamentation was required. Exquisite combinations of 
painted birds and fruits and flowers abounded everywhere, 
in rich contrast with the delicate blue tint that prevailed upon 
the lofty walls. The state-rooms were covered with Persian 
carpets, and hung with tapestries of gold and silver, arranged 
after some graceful artistic foreign fashion." 

The "wide hall," forty-four feet in length and twenty-two 
feet in width, occupied the entire ground floor of the center 
of the house and opened Into two large wings to left and 
right. In the right was the reception room in which Ward 
and his staff held council.^ 

On August 3 Ward took part in the perturbed council 
of war which discussed the crisis threatened by the nearly 
empty powder magazines. The American generals had been 
continuously concerned because of the small amount of gun- 
powder (only about 300 barrels) reported on hand. Now, 
suddenly, the 300 barrels had shrunk to only ninety bar- 
rels — not more than nine rounds to a man! The powder had 

* "Pierpont Castle" was, later, for many years known as the "Dearborn House," Gen- 
eral Dearborn — who as a captain had fought under Stark at Bunker Hill — buying 
the property in 1809 and making it his home until his death. In 1869 the estate was 
purchased by the Redemptorist Fathers and has since continued uninterruptedly in their 
possession. In 1876 part of the house was destroyed by fire, but the remainder continued 
in use as a dwelling until 1902, when it was torn down to make way for the present 
handsome brick and stone rectory of the Mission Church, adjoining. 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 169 

not been used, nor stolen, nor wasted to any considerable 
extent. The greater part of the reputed 300 barrels had 
been but a will-o'-the-wisp supply, non-existent save as a 
clerical error of the Committee of Supplies. Washington, 
wrote Sullivan, "was so struck, that he did not utter a word 
for half an hour."^ 

The council voted not only to apply to the neighboring 
provinces for powder, but also to send a party of 300 men 
to raid the royal magazine at Halifax. The latter project 
was, however, allowed to subside. 

The discovery of the mistake was reported to General 
Gage, but the story was considered so Improbable that it 
was discarded as a ruse to draw him out. 

The English commander was also undoubtedly influenced 
by the remarkable change of viewpoint brought about by the 
cost of his Bunker Hill victory. Even prior to Bunker Hill 
he had felt the need of a larger force for use In and 
around Boston, but he had apparently no idea of giving up 
the town. After Bunker Hill, its abandonment was his upper- 
most thought. We find his letters to Lord Dartmouth first 
hinting for, and then virtually requesting, permission to give 
it up and to transfer the seat of war to New York. "I have 
made your Lordship acquainted with the disadvantageous 
situation of his Majesty's Forces In this place, and the more 
It is considered, the worse it Is found to be," he declared in 
his Secret Letter of August 20, Bunker Hill had robbed 
him of all hope of a successful Issue with the New England 
army which so closely besieged him. 

On September 2 there called at Ward's headquarters a 
man who later passed through glory into perpetual Infamy — 
Benedict Arnold, then bearing a commission as colonel and 
about to start on his expedition through the wilderness to 
Quebec. He came to Roxbury with a letter from Washing- 
ton's headquarters requesting the "advice and assistance" of 

"August 5, 1775, to the New Hampshire Committee of Safety, Neiu Hampshire Pre- 
•v'lndal Papers, VII, 572. 




lyo ARTEMAS WARD lAge 47 

Ward and his brigadiers "in promoting this important 
service." ^*^ 

Arnold's detachment consisted of about 1000 rank and file. 
A small force — but chiefly of picked men; and these leavened 
with many of more than ordinary daring. Young Aaron Burr 
was of its number; and Daniel Morgan, later terrible to the 
English as the chief of "Morgan's Rangers," commanded the 
three companies drawn from the Virginia, Pennsylvania, and 
Maryland riflemen who had joined the army a few weeks 
earlier. 

The men were "taken off the roll of duty" on September 
8, and on that date and the ninth were encamped in separate 
quarters at Cambridge while preparations were completing 
for their departure the following week. 

The shaping of this enterprise — one so attractive to Wash- 
ington's temperament; a project plentifully beset with ad- 
venturous danger — aroused in the Virginian a restless im- 
patience over the deadlock to which his own campaign seemed 
tending. 

The opposing armies lay in sight of each other, yet there 
promised no opportunity of decisive action. The English 
strengthened their works on the Boston and Charlestown 
peninsulas, and the Americans strengthened, and contracted, 
their encircling lines without; but the English army was not 
strong enough to raise the siege, nor the American to attempt 
a general assault. Instead, were only occasional skirmishes 
and a succession of fruitless alarms. 

The enforced inaction sorely tried Washington's soul. The 
eyes of two continents were upon him and he had not yet 
learned the caution which the calamitous campaign of the next 
summer instilled into him. With mounting recklessness he 
planned to hazard his army on a single stroke. 

" The letter enjoined "profound secrecy" concerning t]ie project, but, as on many similar 
occasions, the news leaked through to the camps. Jedediah Huntington, writing to his 
father, Jabez Huntington, on September 5, refers to the Arnold expedition as "Secret, 
thou' known to every Body." — Original letter, September 4—5, 177S, General Jedediah 
Huntington Letters, Connecticut Historical Society. 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 171 

The average reader — also, many a historian — takes as his 
model for the Washington of the siege of Boston, the re- 
sourceful self-contained commander-in-chief of two or so 
years later. And thereby greatly errs, and spoils the picture 
which should most interest him — the forming of the character 
of the "father of his country," of the Washington of York- 
town and the presidency. 

The Washington of the siege of Boston was he of the 
French war — a man of but scant military experience, unused 
to the command of large bodies of men; older but still un- 
tamed, distrustful of what the future might bring, and ready 
to stake everything on the dice of the present. 

His plan, submitted in letters on September 8 and argued 
in council of war on September 11, was to attack Boston by 
rowboats. 

Truly the Washington of the French war, whose reckless 
disregard of his enemy's far greater strength had compelled 
his capitulation on that other earlier occasion when fate had 
given him the chief command. Time had not dimmed his 
rashness, for now, with his troops only partly armed, and 
crippled by shortage of powder, he proposed to storm a for- 
tified town in open boats — a town, by his own description, 
"surrounded in a manner by ships of war and floating bat- 
teries."^^ Before he could attempt his musket attack, he 
must carry his men in those boats for a mile or more with 
artillery playing full upon them. 

Among the reasons he advanced for so wild a move were 
the expense of keeping his men warm through the winter and 
the fear that necessity might destroy the fences and orchards 
in the vicinity! 

He doubted equally his ability to hold an army together 
and the ability, or willingness, of the country to meet the 
cost of its subsistence. 

He was far from realizing the length of the fight ahead 

"To Robert Carter Nicholas, October 5, 1775. — Ford, Writings of Washington, III, 
171. 



172 ARTEMAS WARD iAge 47 

of him. His idea was, and had been, that he could speedily 
crush the English army and then disband the American.^^ 

It was well that Ward and the other New Englanders 
whom Charles Lee sarcastically referred to as the "Big 
Wigs," helped to hold the hotheaded Virginian in leash and, 
by their decision against attempting the assault, prevented 
him from thus wrecking the careful work of the Massachu- 
setts patriots who had for years maintained a stout front 
against British domination. 

Washington felt keenly also his failure to impress profes- 
sional military standards on his army. In his first Cambridge 
letter to the Continental Congress he had apologetically re- 
ferred to the several days' delay in obtaining the regimental 
returns, explaining that he had been "unapprized of the imper- 
fect Obedience which had been paid to those [orders] of the 
like Nature from General Ward." To Richard Henry Lee 
he made the point still more strongly: "Could I have con- 
ceived, that what ought, and, in a regular army, would have 
been done in an hour, would employ eight days . . ." And 
he had added (in his letter to Congress) that he flattered 
himself that the reasons "will no longer exist; and of Conse- 
quence more Regularity and exactness in future prevail." ^^ 
But the fulfilment of that laudable expectation was to be long 
deferred. Months later, on the same point and in the same 
camps, there was just as long delay; and not until nearly three 
years after Washington had assumed the chief command — 
not until after Steuben had overhauled and systematized^^ — 

^ "The state of inactivity in which this army has lain for some time," he wrote to the 
Continental Congress, September 21, 1775, "by no means corresponds with my wishes by 
some decisive stroke to relieve my country from the heavy expense its subsistence must 
create . . . there is not a man in America, who more earnestly wishes such a termination 
of the campaign, as to make the army no longer necessary." — Ford, TFritings of Washing- 
ton, III, 145, 146. 

"Ford, JFrltings of Washington, III, 11, 22. 

"Steuben, in the spring of 1778, working with Washington's headquarters army — the 
heroic little band at Valley Forge — found "Nothing was se difficult, and often so impos- 
sible, as to get a correct list of the state or a return of any company, regiment, or corps." 
The army had come to be "looked upon as a nursery for servants," and some of the 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 173 

could the American army be described as a disciplined military 
force. ' 

Washington was slow to perceive that much of the petty 
insubordination and many of the unmilitary habits rife in the 
American camps were inherent to the conditions, and he had 
at first essayed to treat the men besieging Boston as though 
they were professional soldiers. On July 17 the Reverend 
William Emerson had written, "There is great overturning 
in the camp, as to order and regularity. New lords, new laws. 
The Generals Washington and Lee are upon the lines every 
day. New orders from his Excellency are read to the respec- 
tive regiments every morning after prayers. The strictest 
government is taking place, and great distinction is made be- 
tween officers and soldiers. Every one is made to know his 
place, and keep in it, or to be tied up and receive thirty or 
forty lashes, according to his crime." ^^ 

The "new lords" and "new laws" did produce a consider- 
able improvement in discipline — variously attributable to 
Washington's personal efforts, to the military experience of 
Charles Lee and Gates, and to the greater measure of au- 
thority carried by commissions issued by a congress represent- 
ing all the colonies. But It was very far from being a com- 
plete transformation; it was largely temporary; and it was 
followed by severe reaction. Harsh words, rigorous punish- 
ments, and class distinctions were unpleasant fare, and the 
camps soon again seethed with friction. Before three months 
had passed we find the New Englanders In such an irritated 
condition that a deduction from their allowance was sufficient 
to produce the greatest alarm in their commander — Washing- 
ton was compelled to advise Congress on September 21 that 
"the greater part of the troops are in a state not far from 
mutiny." ^^ In the same letter he confessed his inability to 

irregularities were extraordinarily flagrant. Regiments carried on their rolls men who 
had been absent for a year or more. — Kapp, Life of Frederick William Von Steuben, 
115-119. 

" Sparks, Writings of Washington, III, 491. 

" Ford, Writings of Washington, III, 147. 



174 ARTEMAS WARD l^ge 47 

obtain the men's subscriptions to the new continental articles 
of war. 

These months were marked also by the birth and growth 
of the estrangement between Washington and Ward. No 
light was ever shed upon its original cause by either man, but 
indirect evidence points to a mutual lack of cordiality as hav- 
ing existed from their first meeting. There are three prob- 
able explanations: first, James Warren; second, Charles Lee; 
and third, Washington's biting comments on both officers and 
privates of the Massachusetts troops. 

James Warren had conceived and expressed the idea that 
the failure to hold Bunker Hill, the lack of discipline, and 
pretty nearly every other trouble, was Ward's fault. Wash- 
ington had not anticipated the conditions he encountered in 
the American camps and he apparently adopted James War- 
ren's line of thought and hastened to the conclusion that the 
disorder he found was due to laxity in Ward's methods. 

Next on the list we have Charles Lee, still smarting from 
the two wounds to his pride — the twice passing of his name 
in the selection of those to command the Revolutionary 
army. Under the circumstances one would not expect "Boil- 
ing Water" (so the Indians had nicknamed Lee) to appre- 
ciate a provincial general who had little to say for himself, 
who was a judge by profession Instead of a soldier, and who 
had established Cromwell's practice of the troops' daily 
attendance at prayers — "Deacon Ward," Lee styled him; and 
one would expect Lee, never sparing In criticism of people 
whom he disliked or who might be in his way, to pass many 
sneers to Washington concerning Ward. We also know that 
until the battle of Monmouth (June 28, 1778) Washington 
held a very high opinion of Lee's military judgment and 
ability. 

The third surmise — Washington's harsh criticisms of New 
Englanders: his impugning of their personal habits, courage, 
intelligence, and morality — was probably a fertile cause of 
the continuance and growth of the ill feeling, for General 



iTjSl THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 175 

Ward strongly resented disparagement of Massachusetts by 
Southerners. 

Though no action of moment broke the period from Bunker 
Hill to Dorchester Heights, no commander lacked duties 
or troubles. 

The defenses of the right wing grew steadily more for- 
midable, and their construction and maintenance kept Ward's 
division fully occupied. The council of war of July 9 had 
debarred any attempt on Dorchester Neck, but the Boston 
Neck lines were pushed forward to within musket-shot of the 
enemy's advance-works, being there supported by a strong 
redoubt at Lamb's Dam. 

Constant watchfulness was required to see that the works 
were at all times sufficiently manned, that ammunition was 
not wasted, and that the troops did no damage to private 
houses in Roxbury, nor wantonly to the fields of the surround- 
ing country. 

Also to guard against the weakening of the land blockade 
of Boston. Some cattle having been allowed to wander so 
close to the English lines that they had fallen prey to the 
enemy, to their nourishment and rejoicing. Ward Issued 
notice to the owners of live stock that they would be deemed 
"enemies to their country" If their stock were found grazing 
beyond the advance-works on Boston Neck, and ordered sen- 
tries to fire on any cattle permitted so to stray. 

A few weeks later he dispatched orders to the com- 
manding officer at Hingham to strip Nantasket because of 
the suspicion that "an unjustifiable intercourse has been kept 
up between some of the Inhabitants . . . and our unnatural 
enemies belonging to the Men of War." Its Inhabitants and 
all "moveable necessaries of life" — hve stock, hay, corn, etc., 
— were ordered taken off. 

Unauthorized liquor selling was another evil to be guarded 
against, and pay-day generally spelled trouble. ^^ 

" "Peace with our Enemy, but disturbance enough with rum, for our men got money 
yesterday." — Revolutionary Journal of Aaron Wright, October 7, 1775, Historical Maga- 
zine, VI, 210. 



176 ARTEMAS WARD [.Age 47 

Grievances, both real and imaginary; regimental gossip and 
scandal; stories of attacks projected by both armies, and all 
manner of other reports — from authentic news to the vaguest 
rumors — gave the men plenty to talk, think, and grumble 
about. One diary epitomizes the condition in the terse entry: 
"very much camp news, but nothing serious." 

The long-distance cannonading (long, that is, for those 
days, and chiefly by the British guns) early became an old 
story. The men soon lost their first fear of cannon shot 
and contended for the balls as they ricochetted along the 
ground. The successful captor would take the ball to the 
general of his brigade and receive his reward in a gallon or 
two of rum with which to stand treat to his company. The 
sport was at first encouraged by officers as tending to offset 
the moral effect of the enemy's bombardment, but later it be- 
came necessary to discourage and suppress it, as a number of 
men were laid up from tackling the balls before they were 
sufficiently spent. 

Even the bursting of shells in the camp became an occasion 
for glee instead of fear. 

A Connecticut lieutenant describes an artillery duel between 
the American guns at Roxbury and those of the Boston forts, 
during the course of which "the dogs hove a ball right over 
our incampment, which made as bad a noise as a flock of wild 
geese." He adds, "I find that the exchanging these few 
shot has done more to exhilarate the spirits of our people 
than 200 gallons of New England rum." The shells "had 
scarcely time to break before they would surround them to 
pick up the pieces of them as so many curiosities I" ^^ 

Occasionally a shot or shell would strike unpleasantly close. 

One of the Maryland riflemen attached to the Roxbury 
division telk of a 32-pound cannon shot which "rushed through 
the room and dashed one side out of the chimney, broke 2 
partitions and filled our dishes with plastering, ceiling and 

^' Diary of Jabez Fitch, Jr., August 15, 1775, Massachusetts Historical Society Pro- 
ceedings, 2d, IX, 45. 



I'jjc^'l THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 177 

bricks." He and three others were breakfasting at the time. 
He adds that he couldn't speak for what his companions 
thought, but "I went down two pair of stairs, three strides 
without a fall, and as soon as I was out of doors ran to the 
Brestwork in great haste, which is our place of safety, without 
the least concern about my breakfast, to James McCancie's 
amazement 1"^® 

Again, one of Ward's chaplains records in his diary: 
"Nothing special to day except we had one cannon ball shot, 
which threw so much dust into a man's bason of bread and 
milk as spoiled his breakfast." 2*^ 

There was always intense interest in news from Boston — 
obtained from deserters from the English army, from occa- 
sional captives, and from letters written by residents of the 
town and sent into and through the American camps under 
the military arrangements made for the exchange of private 
communications. 

The strict discipline and poor fare of the English army 
resulted In a number of Its men deserting and slipping through 
to the American lines. They were welcomed with generous 
potations of rum as pay for the stories they told, until that 
practice was sternly forbidden In general orders. The desert- 
ers generally tuned their tales to whatever key they thought 
would gain the best welcome : sometimes giving solemn 
warnings of assaults projected; at other times attempting to 
ingratiate themselves by pictures of the great weakness of 
the enemy's camp. One man told with circumstantial detail 
of the low state of the English army — that there were not 
nine hundred rank and file fit for dutyl 

Some of these erstwhile redcoats were passed into the coun- 
try, where they were joyfully set at the farm work which 
the besiegers had perforce left undone. 

Traveling with the Boston news and gossip were many 

"Daniel McCurtin's Journal, August l8, 1775, Papers relating chiefly to the Mary- 
land Line, 13. 

^" Diary of the Reverend Benjamin Boardman, September 14, 1775, Massachusetts 
Historical Society Proceedings, 2d, VII, 406. 



178 ARTEMAS WARD [.Age 47 

stones, true and otherwise, of happenings in England: the 
actions of the ministry, and of various prominent men ahgned 
both for and against the government's American course; ac- 
counts of an "accommodation arranged"; numerous tales of 
large reinforcements coming or to be sent, and of great dis- 
turbances in England: "of the Parliament House in London 
beingpulleddown, andof Lord North and Governor Hutchin- 
son flying to France" ; that "the people in England were in 
great tumult, and that Lord North had been wounded." ^^ 

A rumor early drifted through the lines that the English 
ministry had ordered the abandonment of Boston; and 
Howe's failure to make any move to raise the siege gave it 
weight in Washington's estimation. The rumor was baseless 
— no such order arrived until several weeks later — but it 
accurately mirrored the desires of the English commander! 

The (inevitable) transgressions in the American camps 
were met with penalties which — though mild compared 
with the EngHsh code — would seriously offend modern 
sensibilities. 

Whipping has been referred to in an earlier page as a 
common measure. Its severity depended largely upon the 
disposition of those who carried out the sentence. Other 
punishments were "riding the wooden horse" — a barbarous 
torture — and the pillory. One man who was condemned to 
the pillory for an hour "for being concerned In writing an 
infamous letter" against his colonel, fainted before his time 
was up and gave "the doctors much ado to bring him to."^^ 

The letter-writer had his satisfaction a few weeks later, 
for that particular colonel faced a court-martial for employ- 
ing members of his regiment to work on his farm, and was 
dismissed from the service. "Amen to that," rejoiced another 
private at the news.^^ 

** Diary of Ezekiel Price, August i6, 20, 1775, Massachusetts Historical Society Pro- 
ceedings, VII, 204, 205. 

'^ Paul hunt's Diary, September 20, 1775. 

^ Samuel Bixby's Diary, October 23, 1775, Massachusetts Historical Society Pro- 
ceedings, XIV, 295. 



ijTSl THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 179 

It perchance happened that a culprit was popular, and 
then his punishment stirred the troops to mutiny. On 
September 10 there was "Great commotion on Prospect 
Hill among the riflemen, occasioned by the unreasonable con- 
finement of a sergeant by the adjutant of Thompson's regi- 
ment; and before it was over, 34 men were confined and two 
of them put in irons at headquarters in Cambridge." ^^ 

On another occasion "their was a Rifle man whipt 39 stripes 
for Stealing and afterwards he was Drummed out of camp. 
If the infernal regions had been opened . . . there could 
not have been a biger uproar." ^^ 

These riflemen from the South had at first been the object 
of the greatest curiosity, admiration, and gratitude. Their 
marksmanship continuously commanded respect, but otherwise 
the rank and file speedily outwore their welcome. Ward, 
writing to John Adams, remarked, October 30, 1775, "They 
do not boast so much of the Riflemen as heretofore. Genl 
Washington has said he wished they had never come; Genl. 
Lee has damned them and wished them all in Boston; Genl 
Gates has said, if any capital movement was about to be made, 
the Riflemen must be moved from this camp."-*^ 

Charles Lee, as might be expected, reiterated his opinion 
freely and caustically. To Benjamin Rush he wrote, "I once 
was of opinion, that some Battalions from the Southward 
wou'd be necessary — but I have alter'd my opinion. I am 
now perswaded you have not to the Southward so good mate- 
rials for common soldiers. Your Riflemen have a good deal 
open'd our eyes upon the subject, tho' to do justice to their 

^ Revolutionary Journal of Aaron Wright, Historical Magazine, VI, 209. So serious 
appeared the possibilities of this outbreak that Generals Washington, Charles Lee, and 
Greene in person took part in quelling it. — Jesse Lukens' original letter, September 15, 
I775i sold by Henkels, Philadelphia, December 5, 1898. 

^ Samuel Haws, October 9, 1775, Military Journals of Tilo Private Soldiers, 76. 
IVIcCurtin (October 9, 1775, Papers relating chiefly to the Maryland Line, 21) also 
recorded that occasion, stating that fifty-two drummers and as many fifers took part in 
the proceedings and that he could not even hear the man next him. 

^* Original letter, Adams Collection, Massachusetts Historical Society. 



i8o ARTEMAS WARD {Age 47 

officers They are unexceptionable; their Privates are in gen- 
eral damn'd riff raff — dirty, mutinous, and disaffected." ^^ 

On September 27 came the arrest of Benjamin Church 
as a traitor, an intercepted cipher letter suddenly rending the 
high confidence that had been reposed in him. A few days 
later (October 3) a council of war was called to consider 
the charge against him. It resulted in a second meeting on 
the following morning, with the former head of the Com- 
mittee of Safety present for examination. Church tried to 
explain away his clandestine epistle, but the assembled gen- 
erals could see no merit in his defense and they unanimously 
found him guilty. Furthermore, the punishment prescribed 
by the army regulations seemed to them "very inadequate" 
for the offense — and they referred the matter to the Conti- 
nental Congress "for their special direction," meantime 
isolating Church under strict guard. ^^ 

On the following Sunday (October 8) Ward took part in 
a council of war to decide upon the number of men needed 
to continue the siege; the length of service for which they 
should be enlisted; their pay, rations, clothing, regimental 
organization, etc. 

It was unanimously agreed that the grand total of the 
army ought not to be less than 20,372 men; that enlistments 
should be until December i, 1776; and that both pay and 
rations should be the same as for the "eight months' army" 
whose term was nearing an end. The council was divided on 

"October lo, 1775, Lee Papers, I, 211. 

^ The Continental Congress ordered Church to be taken into Connecticut and held in 
close confinement there. On May 14 (1776), acting on his pleas of ill health, it 
authorized his return to Massachusetts and his release on bail. Reports followed that 
he was to be exchanged for an American officer held prisoner by the English. Ward 
protested against the move as "impolitick," and suggested that "for several reasons" well 
known to American councils it would be "highly proper to procrastinate the Exchange" 
as "I think no one can doubt that Doctr Church is fully acquainted with the state of 
our Publick Affairs, and can communicate to the Enemy Intelligence which may be greatly 
detrimental to the United States at this Juncture" (July 5, 1777, Artemas Ward MSS.). 
The plan was temporarily abandoned, but it was reopened in October of the same year 
by the offer of Joshua Loring, British commissary of prisoners, to exchange Dr. M'Henry 
of Philadelphia for him. The Congress negatived the proposal. Church was later per- 
mitted to embark in a vessel bound for Martinique. The ship was lost at sea. 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON i8i 

the method of payment: Washington with four others (Lee, 
Heath, Sullivan, Greene) declared for monthly payments; 
and Ward with four others (Putnam, Thomas, Spencer, 
Gates) for a pay-day every three months. 

A little later the camp was abuzz with the visit of Benja- 
min Franklin and his associates of a Continental Congress 
committee; and shortly after there spread a rumor, which 
became general toward the end of the month, that the French 
were willing to join and aid the Revolutionary cause if "we 
would trade with them."^^ 

On October 17, under the new Massachusetts government, 
Ward was appointed chief justice of the Court of Common 
Pleas for Worcester County.^^ Just a month later the Eng- 
lish commander-in-chief made Timothy Ruggles, the former 
chief justice. Commandant of the "Loyal American Asso- 
ciaters," one of Boston's volunteer loyalist organizations. 

On October 18 Washington again submitted to a council 
of war the question of assaulting Boston. Resolutions of 
the Continental Congress had favored an attack. But again 
the project was voted down. 

Contemporary observers chronicle the changes that the 
siege wrought on the country surrounding the capital. 

The Reverend Emerson had early noted various results 
which were "a little melancholy" . . . "all the lands, fields, 
orchards laid common, horses and cattle feeding in the 
choicest mowing land, whole fields of corn eaten down to the 
ground, and large parks of well-regulated locusts cut down 
for firewood and other public uses,""^ and each succeeding 
month multiplied the evidences of war's rough usage. 

■"Journal of Samuel Haws, October 24, 1775, Military Journals of Tivo Private Sol- 
diers, 78. 

^° The original joint commission of Ward and the other three judges is owned by the 
American Antiquarian Society {Massachusetts Papers, 99). The first sitting of the court 
(the first since its closure — Ward participating — fifteen months before) was held in 
Worcester, December 5, 1775. Ward's military responsibilities prevented him from at- 
tending. 

" Sparks, Writings of Washington, III, 492. 



i82 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 47 

"All around the Encampment is one Scene of Desolation," 
wrote Moses Brown, the Quaker, visiting the province with 
contributions for the poor and distressed in and around Bos- 
ton. -"^^ And Jeremy Belknap, the famous divine and historian, 
declared that nothing struck him with more horror than the 
condition of Roxbury — "that once busy, crowded street Is now 
occupied only by a picquet guard. The houses are deserted, 
the windows taken out, and many shot-holes visible ; some 
have been burnt, and others pulled down, to make room for 
the fortifications." 

"After dining with General Ward," continued Dr. Bel- 
knap, "I returned to Cambridge; In the evening, visited and 
conversed with General Putnam. Ward appears to be a 
calm, cool, thoughtful man; Putnam, a rough, fiery genius." 

Independence had by this time "become a favorite point in 
the army." Hope for an "accommodation" had lost its 
relish. The troops had brushed aside the distinction between 
the Crown and Parliament — "it was offensive to pray for 
theking."33 

The army, as also many civilians In New England, were, 
however, on that point politically In advance of the majority 
of the inhabitants of the other American colonies. Outside 
of New England the general hope was for an alleviation of 
grievances and a resumption of the old relations. 

Disturbing the minds of many, and checking their support, 
was the spectre, not yet laid to rest, of a victorious New Eng- 
land thrusting its domination on the other provinces — by force 
of arms if need be.^^ 

The approach of winter again focussed attention on Dor- 
chester Neck. The peninsula now stood bare of human life, 
save for Ward's sentries and outposts. Its former inhabitants 
had deserted it, as too exposed, during the summer and 
early fall. 

^'Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, 1S77, 171. 
'* Life of Jeremy Belknap, 92, 93. 

** General Greene's letter of October 16, 1775, to Governor Ward of Rhode Island 
deprecates this fear. — Johnson, Sketches of the Life of N athanael Greene, I, 39. 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 183 

In council of war, November 2, the possibility of forti- 
fying its hills was considered afresh. As "the situation of 
American Affairs with respect to Great Britain" might "be 
such as to render it indispensibly necessary, to attempt to 
Destroy the Ministerial Troops in the Town of Boston" be- 
fore they could be reinforced in the spring, "even if it should 
be by Bombarding, & Firing the Town," the question was 
put whether it was "advisable to erect any kind of Works 
upon Dorchester Point, before Frost setts in; & what kind."^^ 

Ensuing events prove that a negative decision was again 
reached, but the record disappeared long ago — the manu- 
script ends abruptly at the fourth page, leaving its interroga- 
tions unanswered. 

The dearth of ammunition is thrown into high relief by 
one of the last questions : 

"In our present Scarcity of Powder, had not our morning 
Gun better be discontinued?" 

The meeting devoted much thought to officering the army 
of '76. Its report contains tentative lists of colonels, lieuten- 
ant-colonels, and majors for the new establishment. The lists 
are valuable as recording the general officers' approval of 
the field-officers named. 

At English headquarters a few days later, Howe, who had 
replaced Gage as commander-in-chief, received Lord Dart- 
mouth's letter of September 5 with word that he had been 
"commanded by the King" to say that it seemed "not only 
advisable, but necessary to abandon Boston before the 
winter." 3^ 

Here was the permission to quit Boston that Gage, first, 
and Howe, succeeding him, had hoped for. But now 
that it had reached him after a two months' voyage across 
the Atlantic, Howe was "with great reluctance" obliged to 
acknowledge that it could not safely be acted on. There were 
not enough ships in the harbor to complete the evacuation in 

^^ American Archives, 4th, III, 1335. 

^^ This is the advice, or order, quoted also on page 137. 



1 84 ARTEMAS WARD [Age 47-48 

one move, and the English officers considered It dangerous 
to divide their forces, especially "at a season when the navi- 
gation on this coast, from the violence of northerly winds, 
Is so very precarious." Deflection of transports by gales 
might extend the separation into months. 

The week marked In Boston by the arrival of Lord Dart- 
mouth's letter declaring for the immediate abandonment of 
the capital of Massachusetts, saw across the ocean his resig- 
nation as Secretary of State for the American Department, 
and the installation of Lord Germain. 

Germain's views differed from those of his predecessor 
and he was strongly against a precipitate desertion of Bos- 
ton, but the wintry Atlantic permitted neither his letters, nor 
even the news of his appointment, to reach the besieged 
town. Not until after he had abandoned Boston did Howe 
receive any inkling of a possible change of the government's 
decision to surrender It. 

The two last months of 1775 and the first of 1776 consti- 
tuted a nerve-racking period for the American commanders. 
"Our situation is truly alarming," declared Washington on 
November 28.^^ The curse of the short-term enlistment 
set Its blight upon the camp. The old enrolment terms 
expired and only a few men had joined the new establish- 
ment. The majority, dissatisfied with their treatment and 
conditions generally, scattered to their neglected homes. 
Many of them, after a short absence, did reenlist, but for 
a full two months the weakness of the American lines was 
very real and might have proved disastrous. 

The first great defection was among the Connecticut men. 
Their sentiment was so clearly displayed toward the latter 
part of November that Washington arranged a conference 
(November 30) with a General Court committee to devise 
measures for meeting the dangers of the situation; Ward, 
Thomas, and Spencer of the right wing taking part in It at 
his request. 

*' To the Continental Congress. — Ford, IFr'tl'tngs of Washington, III, 243-244. 



7775] THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 185 

It was decided to call in 5000 Massachusetts and New 
Hampshire militia to bridge the crisis. They came with an 
alacrity which brought high praise from Washington ;^^ and 
Ward, also, observed "with great satisfaction and pleasure" 
the "peace and quiet" in the camp that followed their ar- 
rival.^^ But the "peace and quiet" were not enduring. Dis- 
order approaching demoralization pervaded the ranks as 
December closed and the New Year opened. 

The American generals kept anxious eyes on every move- 
ment in Boston. Washington wrote, "Not an officer but what 
looks for an attack." 

Washington could not bring himself to a satisfactory esti- 
mate of either Howe's activity or his lack of it. When 
there was any unusual stir in the English camps, he was of 
two minds as to whether Howe was planning to attack, or 
preparing to abandon, the port.'^'^ When the English had 
permitted the precarious period to pass without an attempt 
to take advantage of it, he declared that Howe must either 
have been "very ignorant" of the American conditions 
("which I do not beheve"), or have received orders to take 
no risks until his reinforcements arrived ("which I think is 
natural to conclude" ).^^ 

Tales of the weakness of Washington's force were cur- 
rent in Boston, but the British again feared that the reports 
had been designed to draw them out. To Boston eyes the 
American camps presented a formidable appearance, and the 
militiamen coming In from the country had given the im- 
pression of great numbers. 

''Washington to the Continental Congress, December li, 1775. — Ford, Writings of 
JFashiugtoii, III, 271. 

^^ Ward's Order Book, December 13, 1775. 

*" On December 11, 1775, part of the English troops on Bunker Hill moved into 
winter quarters in Boston. This was quickly magnified by American observers, and on 
the same evening Washington dispatched an express to Ward warning him that he had 
' this moment" received a report "that the enemy have Transported almost their whole 
Force from Bunkers Hill, to Boston ; this semes as if their intention was, either to make 
some considerable Effort, or remove from their present Quarters." — Original letter owned 
(1921) by Agnes Ward White, Parkersburg, W. Va. 

^' To Joseph Reed, February 10, 1776. — Ford, Writings of Washington, 111, 413. 



i86 ARTEMAS WARD [^^e 48 

The English felt severely the hardships occasioned by the 
American leaguer. Food at times ran dangerously low. 
Bounteous stores — cattle and provender, clothing and coal — 
were collected in England and shipped outward, but only a 
small part reached General Howe. Ill management delayed 
the sailing of the ships; and heavy storms held them, and 
scattered them, and ruined much of their cargoes. And, 
finally, the American "armed vessels" — fishing craft and 
merchantmen with cannon mounted on them — exacted a heavy 
toll of those ships which did successfully cross the ocean and 
essayed to beat their way into Boston Harbor. The "armed 
vessels" were chiefly privateers. Howe, writing to England, 
declared that they "infested the bay." 

The miseries of Boston were multiplied by the curse of 
smallpox falling upon it. The horror of the pestilence reached 
through to the American camps, and every precaution was 
taken to prevent their infection.'*^ 

The proximity of the two armies and, especially, the weak- 
ness of the American, impelled unremitting vigilance, but it 
was difficult to impress the American privates, particularly 
new recruits, with the vital importance of outpost and sentry 
details. When both sides had been inactive for some time, 
and especially when the weather was severe, the farmer- 
soldier was tempted to shirk, and to get under cover for a 
spell of rest and a greater measure of comfort than is ordi- 
narily found on sentry duty. This habit was the cause of 
inexpressible anxiety among commanding officers. 

The week preceding Christmas was marked by several 

*^ There are not many Americans of the twentieth century who realize the fear which 
smallpox excited in those days, but Revolutionary records are replete with evidence of it. 
Washington wrote to the Continental Congress, December 14, 1775, that he believed that 
the English held its prevalence in the capital as "a weapon of defence they are using 
against us." — Ford, JFrh'ings of Washington, III, 276. In the following year, after the 
evacuation. Ward warned the commanding officers at Dorchester and Castle Island not 
to permit any men to go into Boston who had not already had the disease, that it would 
be very dangerous to have those posts infected, "for in case of an attack by the enemy 
the Country people would not come to their assistance." — Ward's Order Book, July 4, 
1776. At about the same time Governor Trumbull was writing to Washington that the 
Connecticut men had "a greater dread" of smallpox than of the British army. — Ford, 
Writings of Washington, IV, 218, note. 



ijjS'\ THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 187 

days of extreme cold^^ and on the night of December 22 a 
number of Colonel Learned's guards and sentries on Dorches- 
ter Neck deserted their posts. Ward's stern reprimand to 
the delinquents drew a graphic picture of the high responsibil- 
ity assigned to them, and the disaster to the American cause 
that might follow neglect, and carried an earnest appeal to 
the more experienced officers "to use their utmost endeavors 
to teach others their Duty." 

To these trials of the general officers was added the short- 
age of fuel. On November 2 Washington had emphasized 
the necessity of obtaining a sufficient supply of firewood by 
notifying the Massachusetts General Court that "different 
Regiments were upon the point of cutting each others' throats 
for a few standing locusts near their encampments," and by 
December 31 Greene was writing: "We have suffered pro- 
digiously for want of wood. Many regiments have been 
obliged to eat their provisions raw for want of fuel to 
cook it."'*^ 

The same difficulty troubled the enemy in Boston. "In 
defiance of Repeated Orders," the soldiers so persistently 
helped themselves to firewood by pulling down fences and 
houses that Howe directed "the Provost to go his rounds 
attended by the Executioner, with orders to hang up upon 
the spot the first man he shall detect in the act, without waiting 
for further proof by trial." "^^ 

The American fuel supply was later eked out by the 
cutting of marsh turf. 

Impatient criticism was now making itself heard through- 

^^ "[December] 20, 21, 22 [1775]. Those two days past and this day are pronounced 
to be the coldest three days that ever happened, to the knowledge of many of the in- 
habitants here, . . . they certainly are remarkable in my eyes. The bay was frozed up 
in two nights." 

"23. Very cold and frosty." 

"24. Last night it rained and snowed heavy, and continued the whole day. I went in 
company with another young man about three miles out of our camp this day, and never 
felt such cold in my living days." — Daniel McCurtin's Journal, Papers relating chiefly 
to the Alaryland Line, 29—30. 

" Johnson, Sketches of the Life of Nathanael Greene, I, 48. 

*^ Hoive's Orderly Book, December 5, 1775. 



i88 ARTEMAS WARD \_Age 48 

out the country. To anxious patriots, ignorant of his diffi- 
culties, Washington seemed strangely inactive. The heralded 
"continental generals" had been in charge since early summer, 
and yet, despite the political advantage of the union of the 
colonies, there was little more to show than an extension of 
the work of Ward and the New England militia. It was 
freely stated that an attack on Boston was withheld out of 
regard not only for its inhabitants but also for its many fine 
private properties; and there were not wanting those who 
accused Washington of prolonging the siege in order to 
prolong his importance as commander-in-chief.^^ 

Further perturbing the public mind was the undercurrent 
of suspicion that had been started by the arrest of Benjamin 
Church. Many sinister rumors ran a startling course: one, 
shortly after, that Knox, who had succeeded Gridley as artil- 
lery colonel — and who in later years was Secretary of War 
under President Washington — had been arrested and "dis- 
covered to be active in exposing our works to the enemy." ^'^ 
The rumor carried weight because Knox's wife was Lucy 
Flucker, daughter of the tory Secretary and mandamus 
councilor. 

Another tale, of later date, was that John Adams and 
Hancock had deserted the cause and sailed for England on 
a British man-of-war. When the report reached Braintree, 
John Adams' home town, "such high disputes took place in 
the public house . . . , that some men were collared and 
dragged out of the shop with great threats, for reporting 
such scandalous lies."^^ 

And while Washington sat outside the capital, longing for 
an opportunity to fight and chafing at the thought that he had 
submitted to the restraint of the other general officers,'*^ the 

" Marshall, Life of George JFashlngton, First American edition, II, 272 (different 
page numbers In other editions) ; Ramsay, History of the American Revolution, I, 261. 

"Diary of the Reverend Benjamin Boardnian, October 31, 1775, Massachusetts His- 
torical Society Proceedings, 2d, VII, 4 1 2. 

^Abigail Adams to John Adams, March 2, 1776, Letters of Mrs. Adams, I. 

*° On January 14, 1776, Washington wrote to Joseph Reed, "Could I have foreseen 
the difficulties, which have come upon us ; could I have known that such a bacicwardness 



n75-i77()'\ THE SIEGE OF BOSTON 189 

military fame of Charles Lee grew so great that it threatened 
to obscure all others. 

Every month raised higher his name and further inflated 
his praise. He had come to Cambridge with a well defined 
halo, and his activity, his practical experience, and his eccen- 
tric personality had caused his reputation to grow apace. 
Public attention closely followed him at the siege ; in Rhode 
Island; at New York. Wherever danger threatened, the first 
thought was for "General Lee." 

The opinion seems to have been well-nigh unanimous. 

An interesting reflection of the growth of reliance upon 
Lee, even among those not at first predisposed toward him, 
is in the letters of Abigail Adams. She who, on Washington's 
arrival, had quoted Dryden in order to depict the enthusiasm 
which he Inspired in her, learned to look past him for salva- 
tion in Charles Lee, writing thus to John Adams in Phila- 
delphia : "I feel sorry, that General Lee has left us, but his 
Presence at New York was no doubt of great importance. 
. . . But how can you spare him from here? Can you 
make his place good? Can you supply it with a man equally 
qualified to save us?"^*^ 

would have been discovered in the old soldiers to the service, all the generals upon earth 
should not have convinced me of the propriety of delaying an attack upon Boston till this 
time." — Ford, Writings of IFasliiiigton, III, 344. 
^Letters of Mrs. Adams, I, March 7, 1776. 



CHAPTER XI 

January i6, ijy6-March zy , I'j'jb: Age 48 

The fortification of Dorchester Heights by Ward's division. The 
evacuation of Boston. 

ON January 16 a council of war, attended by John 
Adams, discussed the problems of the siege in the light 
of the Continental Congress resolution of December 22, 
which authorized any offensive action that promised success 
— "notwithstanding the town and the property In it may 
thereby be destroyed." 

The council decided that "a vigorous attempt" ought to 
be made on "the Ministerial army In Boston" as soon as 
practicable, and with that Intent advised the calling in of thir- 
teen militia regiments to serve during February and March. 

Two days later, the number of regiments was reduced to 
ten. The other three must go to the aid of the American 
army In Canada, for the night of January 17 had brought 
word of the reverses before Quebec; of the death of Mont- 
gomery, and the wounding of Arnold. 

As the new army gradually filled up and the reinforcing 
militia regiments began to come In, many in the American 
camps again turned Inquiring and covetous eyes on the 
Dorchester hills. 

Ward had, It will be remembered, thrice planned to occupy 
them In the early days of the siege prior to Washington's 
coming, and he tenaciously adhered to the project. The time 
for its consummation had not yet arrived, but his belief was 
shared by other American officers, and so It happened that. 



I^^6'\ DORCHESTER HEIGHTS 191 

despite winter's grasp upon the camps, preparation had been 
set afoot. 

To fortify the heights would call for extensive earthworks; 
and to raise these in winter, with the ground frozen deep, 
required the use of every available means to lessen the labor 
of digging. So fatigue parties had been set at work in Ward's 
division cutting swamp brush and converting it into fascines 
and gabions:^ the former being bundles of sticks several feet 
in length tied together, to be staked down and then covered 
with earth; and the latter, bottomless hollow cylinders for fill- 
ing with earth, made of wattled twigs and resembling very 
high bottomless baskets. 

To accomplish the possession of the peninsula would mean 
much of the story of Bunker Hill over again: a stealthy 
"going on" at night — then a giant's labor at intrenching to 
be ready to defend the seizure when the dawn should break! 
But now, unlike Bunker Hill, Ward had time for preparation 
— and a supply of fascines and gabions would double the pos- 
sibilities of the night's work, whenever that night should come. 

Much thought had been expended also on the exposed 
condition of the approach to Dorchester Neck. A single 
causeway traversed the marshy ground of the low-lying 
isthmus (the "Little Neck") which connected the peninsula 
with the mainland, and it was commanded by the English ar- 
tillery on Boston Neck. Among the plans discussed was a 
covered way to be built of turf, but this was rejected because 
of the difficulty of securing so large a quantity during the 
winter season. The next suggestion was a barricade of tim- 
ber, stone, and earth, but that also was discarded. 

Washington took part in a survey of the causeway "and 
the necessary ground there for erecting works" ^ on February 
II, coming over to the Roxbury headquarters with General 

^ Gordon, History of the Rise, Progress, and Estahlishment of the Independence of the 
United States of America, First edition, London, II, 189— 19.0 (different page numbers in 
other editions) ; Botta, History of the American War, I, 315. 

* Washington (by Harrison) to Ward, February 11, 1776. — Original letter in the 
possession (1921) of Ward Dix Kerlin, Camden, N. J. 



192 ARTEMAS WARD lAge 48 

Putnam and Colonels Gridley and Knox, and there being 
joined by Generals Ward, Thomas, and Spencer, and 
Lieutenant-Colonel Rufus Putnam. 

A reconnoitering visit to the Dorchester hills themselves by 
the same officers on the day following was responsible for an 
incident which at first alarmed onlookers but which fortu- 
nately developed nothing more serious than a good story for 
camp-talk. 

The party had ridden across the causeway which they had 
so carefully inspected the day previous, and had then con- 
tinued out upon the peninsula. As they were "on the Point, 
and within call of the enemy" they observed two English 
officers "on full speed on Horses from the Old to the New 
[English] lines and concluded they were about to order the 
Artillery levelled at them." Just at that moment also, they 
observed a man deserting from the American to the English 
lines. "This set em all a running & Scampering for life ex- 
cept the lame Col. Gridley, & Putnam who never runs & 
tarried to wait on Gridley. They had left their Horses ^ a 
mile back & feard the Enemy might attempt to encompass 
them." 3 

The visit to the hills was countered on the early morning 
of the fourteenth by the "British raid on Dorchester Neck." 
Howe's report of this to Lord Dartmouth says that "having 
intelligence that the enemy intended to possess themselves 
of Dorchester-Neck," he "ordered a detachment from Castle- 
William . . . under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel 
Leslie, and one composed of Grenadiers and Light Infantry 
from Boston, commanded by Major Musgrave, to pass over 
the ice, with directions to destroy the houses, and every kind 
of cover whatever upon that peninsula ; which was executed, 
and six of the enemy's guard made prisoners."^ 

The English experienced much relief because they did not 
find "any Fascines or Gabions, as a preparation for building 

'Letter of Captain Chester, Ma^^aziiie of American History, VIII, 127. 
* American Archives, 4th, V, 458. 



777^] DORCHESTER HEIGHTS 193 

a Battery on Fosters Hill [Nook Hill] as we had been given 
to understand was intended."^ The relief was ill-founded, 
for the fascines and gabions had increased in number daily — 
stored, though, well behind the American lines awaiting the 
time for their use — but the conclusion which fathered it was 
very pleasing to Howe, for he was, in an orderly manner, get- 
ting ready to abandon the town in the spring,^ and an Amer- 
ican occupation of Dorchester Neck — or any other important 
military move — might disrupt his plans and perhaps also 
bring with it another large and unprofitable casualty bill. 

It is not easy to explain why Howe had not in all these 
months essayed to occupy Dorchester Neck. He may have 
minimized the importance of its position, or he may have been 
afraid to further divide his forces — or he may merely have 
procrastinated. That he only awaited shipping to abandon 
the town undoubtedly influenced him, but it is not, alone, 
a satisfactory reason, for (as he should have seen, if he did 
not; and as events proved) upon the identity of the force, if 
any, that should occupy Dorchester Neck, depended the man- 
ner and time possible for evacuation. He professed not to 
feel the "least apprehension of any attack . . . from the 
Rebels,"^ but his Bunker Hill experience must have given him 
some qualms at leaving open a similar potential battle site. 

Curiously enough, Washington was imbued with similar 
lukewarmness. He found little comfort in preparing for the 
occupation of Dorchester Neck. His inspections of the penin- 
sula had apparently confirmed his doubts of the practicability 
and value of the project, and he dwelt with impatient appre- 
hensive alarm on the thought that the British might over- 
whelm him when their reinforcements arrived. So, after 
preparatory discussions and consultations which spread from 
major-generals to brigadier-generals and from brigadiers to 

" Lieutenant-Colonel Kemble's Journal, February 13, 1776, Kemhle Papers, I, 69. 

"Howe to Lord Dartmouth, January 16, 1776: "that no time may be lost in trans- 
porting the army from hence to New York, I shall continue to take up all proper vessels 
that can be got." — American Archi-ves, 4th, IV, 701. 

'November 26, 1775, to Lord Dartmouth, American Archives, 4th, III, 1672. 



194 ARTEMAS WARD [yi^e 48 

field-officers, and thence to captains and subalterns, he in 
council of war on February 16 proposed to take advantage 
of the ice-locked harbor and make a musket attack on Boston. 

The plan was not quite so reckless as the rowboat assault 
he had urged in September, but it was excessively rash for an 
army with powder magazines so low that little use could 
be made of artillery^ and with 2000 of Its men destitute 
even of firearms, against a well-garrisoned town — a town that 
was "almost impregnable — every avenue fortified" — Wash- 
ington's own description of it a month later after hehad viewed 
the English defenses from the inside.^ It offered slight hope 
of success; and weighing against it were the disastrous results 
to the American cause which would surely follow a repulse. 

"Gen. Ward opposed the idea, saying 'the attack must 
be made with a view of bringing on an engagement, or of 
driving the enemy out of Boston, and either end will be an- 
swered much better by possessing Dorchester heights.' 
Gen. Gates was also against It."^*^ 

The general officers upheld Ward and decided against 
an assault. 

Washington then required their opinions "whether It would 
be advisable to begin a Cannonade & Bombardment with the 
present stock of powder?" 

* The American army was again — or still — desperately short of powder. On February 
3, Ward had written to Hancock: "We are in great want «f the needful, Pray God to 
send us a supply. Accounts respecting that dwindle to almost nothing — If you have it I 
begg you will Impart to us that want." — Original letter, Library of Congress. Washing- 
ton also wrote urgently, but also to little effect. 

* To Joseph Reed, March 19, 1776. — Reed, Life and Correspondence of Joseph Reed, 
I. T^77- 

"Gordon's History of the Rise, Progress, and Estahlishment of the Independence of 
the United States of America, First edition, London, II, 189 (different page number in 
other editions). Gordon's history has been convicted of plagiarism of the Annual Reg- 
ister and Ramsay's History of the Revolution in South Carolina, but it holds value for 
the period of the siege of Boston as the only important contemporary history by a resi- 
dent in and around the camps surrounding Boston who was also in close association with 
the American leaders. It is in describing military operations in other zones that Gor- 
don's literary thefts become flagrant: his "use of borrowed material varying in amount 
according to the distance from Boston." — Colby, American Historical Association 
Annual Report, 1S99, I, 3/6. Gordon's credit to Ward as the chief opponent of the 
assault and the chief advocate of the fortification of Dorchester Heights, carries special 
weight because (as in his account of, and references to, Bunker Hill) he was not by any 
means prejudiced in Ward's favor. 



777^] DORCHESTER HEIGHTS 195 

Their replies advised a cannonade and bombardment "as 
soon as there shall be a proper supply of Powder" but "not 
before." 

The council of war followed this second refusal to accept 
Washington's views by resolving instead that "preparations 
should be made to take possession of Dorchester Hill, with 
a view of drawing out the enemy, and of Noddle's Island, 
also, if the situation of the water and other circumstances will 
admit of it." And this resolution, as it applied to Dorches- 
ter Neck, was approved for action. 

To Ward thus finally came a full unanimous decision for 
the accomplishment of his long cherished plan. 

Then commenced a very busy time in the Roxbury division. 
A large quantity of fascines and gabions had been collected, 
but there was still much to be done. A Massachusetts lieu- 
tenant who had come in early in February records "great 
preparations . . . for some new Enterprize, such as 
Fashienes, Gaboreenes, Barracks ready Framed, & boards 
cut. All imagined that Dorchester Hill was the Object of 
our Attention." 11 

The deep frozen ground continued, however, to worry the 
American commanders and engineers. Even with the use of 
fascines and gabions, it was considered doubtful if substantial 
works could be built within the brief space of a single night. 
The problem was solved by the construction of chandeliers, 
a device new to the experience of the besiegers. ^^ They con- 
sisted of stout wooden frames in which the fascines could be 
set, held in place by picketing, and covered with soil. 

The plan determined upon for the fulfilment of the council 
of war resolution was the fortification of the two main hills, 
"the Heights," overnight. 

" Journal of Lieutenant Isaac Bangs, 9. 

"By Rufus Putnam's testimony (Buell, Memoirs of Rufus Pitlnam, 58) neither he 
nor any one else in the American councils had thought of chandeliers as a solution of the 
difficulty until he happened upon a description of them in Muller's Field Engineer — and 
he did not even know the military meaning of the word "chandelier" when he first saw it. 



196 ARTEMAS WARD lAge 48 

Nook Hill,^^ one of the lower hills of the peninsula, bore 
more directly on the English positions — both on the Boston 
Neck lines and the town itself — but it was not tenable unless 
the higher points were first possessed; and it could not be 
occupied simultaneously with them without prematurely dis- 
closing the American objective. 

It was decided to screen the causeway with a great barri- 
cade of bundles of twisted hay — hay "screwed into large bun- 
dles of seven or eight hundred weight" ^^ — the barricade to 
be raised on the same night that the peninsula should be 
occupied. The hay bundles could serve also for filling the 
chandeliers. 

On February 21 Ward issued orders forbidding all inter- 
course between the English and American lines. ^^ There was 
to be no more exchanging of letters or messages. 

So great were the preparations necessary that the Dorches- 
ter Heights project was not the "secret" move indicated by 
more than one historian. On the contrary, it was of common 
report in the camp,^'' for there remained only one unfortified 
position of sufficient importance to serve as an explanation. 

The secrecy essential was not of the intention, which could 
not be concealed, but of the time to be set for the attempt — 
lest word should be passed through to the English com- 
mander, and the Americans should be forestalled or should 

" Also called "Foster's Hill," as in Lieutenant-Colonel Kenible's Journal, quoted on 
page 193. 

^* Thachtr's Military Journal, March 4, 1776. 

"Gates' letter of February 21, 1776, to Ward, says that Washington "intirely 
approves" of Ward's stopping all intercourse. The original is (1921) owned by Agnes 
Ward White, Parkersburg, W. Va. 

'" Lieutenant Isaac Rangs I have quoted on page I9S- As February closed we find the 
occupation of the peninsula confidently predicted in contemporary diaries and letters: 
"Great talk of our army taking possession of Dorchester Hill in a few days." — Diary 
of Ezekiel Price, February 29, 1776, Massachusetts Historical Society Proceedings, Yll, 
239; "Great preparations making for our going on Dorchester Hill, which we believe 
will very soon happen." — Daniel McCurtin's Journal, March i, 1776, Papers relating 
chiefly to the Maryland Line, 32; "I think we shall undoubtedly go on Dorchester next 
week." — Jedcdiah Huntington to Jabez Huntington, March i, 1776, original letter, 
February 29-March l, 1776, General Jedcdiah Huntington Letters, Connecticut Histori- 
cal Society. 



i'jj6'\ DORCHESTER HEIGHTS 197 

be caught at a disadvantage when at work on the heights. 
Hence, Ward's stoppage of all communication with Boston. 

The confidence of the American rank and file in the success 
of so considerable an enterprise had been enhanced by Knox 
bringing into the lines a number of the cannon, mortars, and 
howitzers that had fallen into the hands of Ethan Allen, 
Benedict Arnold, and Seth Warner when they captured 
TIconderoga and Crown Point during the first month of 
the war. The effect upon the general officers was less marked 
because of their knowledge of the scantiness of the gun- 
powder supply. 

While Ward's division labored, the English commander-in- 
chief continued to plan his removal, looking forward to that 
spring day when he hoped to find himself so well supplied 
with ships that the army and its supplies, and the Boston 
tories and their belongings, could safely be slipped away from 
sight and sound and vengeance of that peculiarly constituted 
gathering of rebellious New Englanders which held him 
besieged. In anticipation, he dismounted a number of his 
heavy cannon and placed them on board his ships. ^"^ 

By February 26 Ward's preparations were so far advanced 
that Washington advised both the Continental Congress and 
the Massachusetts Council of the determination to occupy 
the peninsula, and he asked the Council to direct the militia 
of the towns "most contiguous to Dorchester and Roxbury 
to repair to the lines at those places, with their arms, am- 
munition and accoutrements, instantly upon a signal given," 
as to weaken his center by detaching men for the Dorchester 
lines before the English had disclosed their point of attack 
might "neither be consistent with prudence nor good policy." 

^^ This and other similar acts were noted by American observers, and Washington, 
February 26, sent word of them to Charles Lee in New York to warn him that the 
enemy's Boston fleet and army might soon be headed for New York — "They have removed 
the two mortars from Bunker's Hill and carried them with a great part of their heavy 
brass cannon on board their ships." To Hancock he sent a similar account, adding that 
"a Mr. Ides who came out yesterday says that the inhabitants of the town generally 
believe that they are about to remove either to New York or Virginia." — Ford, Writings 
oj Washington, III, 436, 433-434. 



198 ARTEMAS WARD [^ffe48 

Thomas, as was his due, had been selected to head the 
occupying detachment. 

Washington was, however, still far from being satisfied. 
He did not yet realize the importance of the fortification of 
the Dorchester hills. He continued to nurse his disappoint- 
ment that his musket assault plan had not been accepted, 
though still at this date a considerable number of his men 
were without arms.^^ His letter of February 26 to Joseph 
Reed dwells on his rejected project. "This [the formation 
of "some pretty strong ice from Dorchester to Boston Neck, 
and from Roxbury to the Common"] I thought ... a 
favorable opportunity to make an assault upon the troops in 
town. I proposed it in council; but, behold 1 though we had 
been waiting all the year for this favourable event, the enter- 
prise was thought too dangerous! ... it is now at an end, 
and I am preparing to take post on Dorchester, to try if the 
enemy will be so kind as to come out to us."^^ 

But the very day on which Washington had thus written, 
one of Ward's outposts notified him of new British activities 
— of loaded boats passing between Boston and Castle 
William; of a boat, with swivel-guns aboard, apparently 
viewing conditions around "the point." ^° And on the mor- 
row (February 27) came a report that the British were land- 
ing men on Dorchester Neck, "upon which an alarm was 
beat, expresses galloping to Cambridge, the whole army in 
Roxbury in arms, and the soldiers quartered in the neighbor- 
hood all marching to join the main body and everything had 
the appearance of a sudden battle." ^^ 

It proved a false alarm, but it shocked Washington into a 
full sense of the importance of the work under way, and of 
the danger that Howe might forestall him in seizing the penin- 

" Washington to Schuyler, February 25, 1776. — Ford, Writings of TFashtngton, III, 
430, note. 

'"Reed, Life and Correspondence of Joseph Reed, I, 166. 

^"Colonel Joseph Read to General Ward, February 26, 1776. — Original letter, Knox 
MSS., II, 37, Massachusetts Historical Society. 

^* Diary of Ezekiel Price, Massachusetts Historical Society Proceedings, VII, 238. 



777^] DORCHESTER HEIGHTS 199 

sula. His mind dwelt upon and magnified the possibility that 
the enemy's apparent preparations to abandon the town might 
cloak some other design, and from that date he was very 
nervous lest Howe should overreach him.^^ 

On Saturday, March 2, a council of war decided him to 
name the night of Monday, March 4, as the time to "go on" 
Dorchester Neck.^^ 

Ward was ready for the call. And Washington, at head- 
quarters, supervised preparations to storm Boston if Howe 
should move any considerable force against the positions 
to be acquired by the Americans on the Dorchester hills. 
Four thousand men under Putnam to make the assault : in two 
detachments, under Brigadiers Sullivan and Greene. One to 
land by the Powder House and gain possession of the enemy's 
work on Beacon Hill; and the other to land near Barton's 
Point and secure the post on Copp's Hill; then, uniting, to 
force their way through the town to the rear of the enemy's 
lines on Boston Neck. 

Plan^ for the assault had been first formulated by Sullivan 
and Greene. ^'^ They had then been amended and submitted 
to Washington in a joint letter signed by Putnam, Sullivan, 
Greene, and Gates ;2^ and accepted by him without change. 

Thus was revived Washington's project of attacking Bos- 
ton by a rowboat army. Still unwisely hazardous but im- 
proved to the extent that it was not to be essayed unless the 
enemy should divert a large part of his strength. ^^ 

** "Should the enemy get pessession of those Hills before us they wauld render it a diffi- 
cult task to dispossess them." — Washington to Ward, February 27, 1776 (Original 
letter owned, 1921, by Agnes Ward White, Parkersburg, W. Va.) ; "Considering the 
hazard of having the Posts on Dorchester Neck taken by the enemy and the evil con- 
sequences which would result from it." — Washington to Ward, March 2, 1776 (Copy in 
Artemas Ward MSS.) ; "... to discover whether they have any designs of Taking 
possession of Dorchester Heights as he [Washington] would by no means have them ac- 
complish it." — R. H. Harrison to Ward, March 3, 1776 (Original letter owned, 1921, 
by Roxa Dix Southard, Groton, Mass.). 

^Washington to Ward, March 2, 1776. — Copy in Artemas TFard MSS. 

"* The original of the Sullivan-Greene plan is (1921) owned by Agnes Ward White, 
Parkersburg, W. Va. 

*" Original letter. Library of Congress. 

°* Commenting on this plan to assault Boston, a curious error slipped into Sir George 



200 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 48 

To carry out this double operation — the occupation of 
Dorchester Neck and an assault upon Boston — every man was 
needed and every musket must be made to count. All work- 
ing parties were ordered back to their regiments and the 
brigadiers were instructed to see that the firearms were "dis- 
posed of to the best advantage, placing them only in the 
hands of such as are fit for duty."^''^ Spears were to be held 
in readiness and to be distributed as needed among those for 
whom no firearms were available. 

Ward called upon the patriotism of his troops, demanding 
that "all officers be vigilant in seeing that their men are well 
equipt & prepared for action — and that every man be imme- 
diately prepared to meet the Enemies of his Country." 

"It is expected," he continued, "that every man in every 
station & department will now exert all his powers for the 
salvation of America. Freedom & glory, shame & slavery, 
are set before us — let us act like men, like Christians, like 
heroes, & form a character for the admiration of posterity." ^^ 

There was one possibility of delay over which Ward had 
no control : that the east wind which was blowing on Sunday 

Trevelyan's highly valued American Revolution. Trevelyan represents Washington as 
disappro'ving the project (19 17 edition, I, 369—370). Continuing, he says (pages 370— 
371): "The prudence of Washington [in opposing the assault on Boston], so General 
Heath declared, was applauded by military men of several nations, after they had made 
an inspection of the land and water which was to have been the scene of action. And 
the veteran was mindful to direct his gratitude higher still, and to aver that Providence, 
kind not for the first time, must have interposed to save his countrymen when they were 
bent on self-destruction." 

"Heath's Memoirs" is given as authority (foot-note, I, 371) both for the statement 
that Washington opposed the storming of Boston and for the lines concerning "The 
prudence of Washington." 

The sentiments quoted are, it is true, to be found in Heath's Memoirs, and on the 
dates given in the foot-note (February 15 and March 5, 1776), but they are Heath's 
sentiments, not Washington's. 

The mistake is attributable to Heath's peculiar habit of referring to himself as "Our 
Captain" and "Our General." 

Another error, less easily explained, is Trevelyan's reference (I, 370; HI, 50) to Heath 
as the commander-in-chief whom Washington succeeded. Heath was in charge at Cam- 
bridge for only the few hours of April 20 which preceded Ward's arrival on the 
afternoon of that day. 

"'General orders, March 3, 1776, Ward's Order Book. 

'* March 3, 1776, Ward's Order Book. 



777^] 



DORCHESTER HEIGHTS 201 



evening might raise the tide so high as to flood the causeway 
over the Little Neck and thus render the task impossible. 

This danger was foreseen and discussed, ^'^ but the wind 
died down, and the next morning (Monday, March 4) Ward 
issued his orders for the fortification of the heights.^" 

Some historians speak of the occupation of the Dorchester 
hills as of Washington's careful detailed planning. This 

'"Washington to Ward, March 3, 1776. — Original letter owned (1921) by Roxa Dix 
Southard, Groton, Mass. 

^^ Ward's order to Thomas is reproduced opposite page 202. It was supplemented by 
the following detailed instructions for the conduct, relief, and support of the detachment. 
Genl. Ward Orders Roxbury 4th March 1776 

That 2100 Men viz i Brigadier Genl. 3 Coll. 3 Lieut Coll. 3 Majors 23 Capts 71 
Subs. 100 Sergts. 3 Drums 1916 Rank. & file 3 Surgeons 3 Males are to be 
Paraded this Eveng at Six oclock precisely, at Dorchester, completely Armd & 
accoutred, with one days Provision ready cook'd. Before the men are marchd from 
the regimental Parades, they are to be handsomely drawn up two deep. Their 
arms, Amunition & Accoutraments strictly examin'd, the commission'd & non-com- 
mission'd Officers properly posted. The Officers will give particular Attention to 
their own Divisions, whether they are employ'd in the work, or as a covering Party, 
& not shift from one part of the Battallion to another. This will give an Oppor- 
tunity for ye free Circulation to the Orders of the Commanding Officer, & enable 
him to conduct any movement with less Danger of Confusion, & greater Probability 
of Success. The Officers will mark well the Behavior of their men; that ye 
Bravery & Resolution of the good Soldier may not pass unrewarded ; & Meanness 
& Cowardice meet with just Contempt. At 3 Oclock Tomorrow morn'g, will be 
paraded for the Relief of the above Party, at ye same Place, 3000 Men viz I 
Brigadier Genl. 5 Coll 5 Lieut. Coll 5 Majors 30 Capts 92 Subs 118 Sergts 5 
Drums 2342 Rank & File 5 Surgeons 5 Mates, Accoutred & posted as above with 
one Days Provision ready cook'd. The 5 Companies of Rifle men equipt as above 
are to parade at the same Place & time. At which time the Remainder of all ye 
Regts are to be turn'd out & take their respective Alarm Posts. The Party that 
is reliev'd from Dorchester is not to be dismiss'd as soon as reliev'd ; but to join 
their respective Regts at their Alarm posts, & wait for further Orders. The Genl. 
expects that in case of an attack, the Officers exert themselves to prevent their 
men from throwing away their Fire before the Enemy are within Reach, & 
recommends that no Soldier fire at any time without a particular Object in View; 
single Guns well aim'd and briskly fir'd, have a greater Tendency to disconcert & do 
more Damage to an Enemy, than firing by Plattoons. The Surgeons and Mates 
are to be equip'd with every thing necessary for their department. It is ordered 
that the whole Camp keep by them one Days Provision ready cook'd ; & that no 
Officer or Soldier strole from their Quarters. 2500 Men Are to parade every Morng 
equip'd, at ye same -hour & Place. 

4th March 
Capt. Hugh Stevenson is to take the command of the three Companies of Rifle 
men in this Incampment, & also the two Companies which are ordered here from 
Cambridge; & at three Oclock tomorrow Morning proceed to Dorchester Point, 
there to obey such orders as he shall receive from Brigadier Genl. Thomas, or the 
Commanding Officer on that Point. By order of Majr Genl. Ward. 

J W Adc 
— Ward's Order Book. 



202 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 48 

is inaccurate, for we have Washington's letter to Ward on 
March 3, only twenty- four hours before the fortification com- 
menced, saying that his suggestions were only tentative. 
"You will," he wrote, "settle matters with the Officers with 
you, as what I have here said is intended rather to convey my 
Ideas generally, than wishing them to be adhered to 
strictly."3i 

The months of preparation crowd to an issue. 

"A very large party of teams" make their appearance in 
camp (teams of oxen, be it understood). An atmosphere 
of general expectation is everywhere present. "Going on 
to Dorchester Neck tonight" is the general toast and 
salutation.^2 

The Roxbury positions are held in greater force than ever 
before: their lines generously reinforced by militiamen from 
the surrounding towns, present for a special three days' 
service. Attracted by the reports of an impending action, the 
men have been coming in all Saturday and Sunday without 
awaiting the formal call. 

"A little before sunset" the several units of Thomas's de- 
tachment marched to their juncture at the Dorchester lines. 
A short wait there, and then the signal was given and the 
American guns at the Lamb's Dam redoubt opened fire on 
the enemy. The English cannon responded smartly. Other 
American batteries took up the tune. And thus commenced 
the fiercest artillery duel that Boston ever experienced.^^ 

It was a matter of supreme importance to keep the English 
so fully occupied that they should divine nothing of what 
Thomas and his men were to do that night — so the American 
cannon coughed and roared as they had never been permitted 
before — loudest of all from the Roxbury forts — for once 

'' Original letter, Artemas Ward MSS. 

^^ Diary, Historical Magazine, VIII, 328. 

^ On the two preceding nights also (Saturday and Sunday, March 2 and 3) there 
had been brisk artillery exchanges. They form part of the conventional story of the siege 
but had little or no bearing on its outcome. 



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From the original (6>.s xS/^), owned by the Massachusetts Historical Society 

WARD'S ORDER FOR THE FORTIFICATION OF 
DORCHESTER HEIGHTS 



777^] DORCHESTER HEIGHTS 203 

reckless of the consumption of powder !^^ And for every 
Yankee shot or shell, the English returned threefold or four- 
fold, until it seemed to the terror-stricken inhabitants of Bos- 
ton "as if heaven and earth were engaged. "^^ 

To this deafening accompaniment Thomas starts his men 
forward. In front, is the covering party of eight hundred. 
Closely following, are the carts with the intrenching tools. 
Then comes the working party of twelve hundred, Thomas 
riding with it. Behind, stretches a "mighty train" of 360 
carts^^ loaded with the bundles of screwed hay, the chan- 
deliers, the fascines, and the gabions. And thus "we went 
over the marsh in fine order and good spirits. "^^ 

The "Little Neck" traversed, the covering party divides: 
half quietly make their way to Nook Flill point to keep watch 
on Boston; half proceed to the point facing Castle Island. A 
line of sentries connects the two posts and extends also along 
the south shore. 

The working detachment and the carts with the intrench- 
ing tools press steadily on to the "twin hills" — the famous 
Dorchester Heights of history. 

The carts with the hay bundles drop them along the cause- 
way and then turn back for new loads ; those with the fascines, 
etc., continue out on the peninsula and slowly and laboriously 
trail the working detachment to the two summits. 

The fatigue men set to the task, Gridley and Rufus Putnam 
directing. An hour's labor^^ is sufficient to enclose a fort by 

^ The free American bombardment has led numerous authorities to state that powder 
had become plentiful in the camp. They overlook Washington's "if we had powder" 
on March 7, 1776, to Joseph Reed. — Ford, Writings of JFashington, III, 462. 

^^ Newell's Journal, March 4, 1776, Massachusetts Historical Society Collections, 4th, 
I, 272. Within the American lines, a soldier in the Roxbury division wrote: "It's 
impossible, I could describe the situation of this town and all about it. This night you 
could see shells, sometimes 7 at a time in the air, and as to cannon, the continual shaking 
of the earth by cannonading dried up our wells." — Daniel McCurtin, March 4, 1776, 
Papers relating chiefly to the Maryland Line, 33. Washington described the cannonading 
as a "continued roar." 

^' Thomas Papers, 1774— 1776, 67, Massachusetts Historical Society, 

^'' Asa Waters MS. Account, Stoughton (Mass.) Historical Society. 

'* Diary, Historical Magazine, VIII, 328. 



204 ARTEMAS WARD [Age 48 

the use of the chandeliers, fascines, and gabions; then all 
hands that can be used are put to digging to complete the job. 
The mildness of the night and its clear moon favor the work. 

Some histories place Washington on the heights riding the 
lines all night. He was not there at all. He was where he 
should have been, at his central headquarters, ready to strike 
at the enemy from left or center; or to receive them at either 
point; or to reinforce his right: according to circumstances or 
as his opponent might move.^'' 

The relief — 3000 men (2342 rank and file) — came on be- 
tween three and four o'clock in the morning. They found 
"two forts in considerable forwardness and sufficient for a 
defence against small arms and grape shot."^*^ 

With them came the five companies of riflemen, "[We] 
went and lay in ambush close by the water side expecting 
every moment that the Butchers belonging to the Tyrant of 
Great Britain would be out among us."^^ But the artillery 
duel held the English attention. Howe had no inkling of the 
works rapidly taking shape. 

"The carts were still in motion with materials; some of 
them have made three or four trips." ^^ Their later trips 
brought several pieces of artillery. 

Before daybreak the two main forts had been supple- 
mented by four smaller auxiliary positions. "A very great 
work for one Night. "^'^ 

For a finishing touch, the bristling points of the abattis^^ — 
war's rough usage of neighboring orchards — are faced with 
barrels of sand and stones. "They presented only the ap- 
pearance of strengthening the works; but the real design was, 
in case the enemy made an attack, to have rolled them down 

** His letter to Ward, on the night of March 4, asks "how the works goe on." — Ar- 
temas Ward MSS. 

*" Thacher's Military Journal, March 5, 1 776. 

"Daniel McCurtin's Journal, March 4, 1776, Papers relating chiefly to the Maryland 
Line, 33. 

" Thacher's Military Journal, M,arch 5, 1776. 

'^^Revolutionary Journal of Col. Jeduthan Baldzvin, March 4, 1776. 

** Howe's report, American Archives, 4th, IV, 458. 



ijjbl DORCHESTER HEIGHTS 205 

the hills." As "the hills on which they were erected were 
steep, and clear of trees and bushes . . . They would have 
descended with such increasing velocity, as must have thrown 
the assailants into the utmost confusion and have killed and 
wounded great numbers." ^^ 

Thus the night passed, its every hour filled with unceasing 
activity. 

Then came the dawn — and through its haze the forts 
loomed before the enemy with a menace that none could 
mistake. 

The English generals gazed, astounded, at the threaten- 
ing lines which had thus magically crowned the heights.^*^ The 
size and strength of the works amazed them. They "must 
have been the employment of at least twelve thousand men," 
declared the English commander.'*'^ 

There was an Immediate convening of a British council of 
war. The fortification of the twin hills had been planned 
only as a first step In the possession of Dorchester Neck — but 
its possibilities were manifest — the English officers did not 
have to await the full gestation of the project! Unless the 

*° Heath's Memoirs, March 4, 1776. The credit for this use of barrels of sand and 
stones is given by General Heath to William Davis, a Boston merchant. Stedman, the 
contemporary English historian who is still quoted with respect by modern military critics, 
considered the plan most effectively practical: "To dislodge the Provincials from their 
new works . . . was impossible," he wrote, "for the British troops must have 
ascended an almost perpendicular eminence, on the top of which the Americans had 
prepared hogsheads chained together in great numbers, and filled with stones, to roll 
down upon them as they marched up: a curious provision, by which whole columns 
would have been swept off at once. . . . This would effectually have destroyed all 
order, and have broken the ranks."— 7//s/orj? 0/ the American War, I, 187—188. In 
these barrels one finds the genesis of a curious story of later years that at the time of the 
fortification of Dorchester Heights, barrels were filled with sand and headed up to de- 
ceive the American troops into the belief that this time they had an unlimited supply 
of powder with them! (Reference to this story was made by Wm. H. Sumner, ^eiu 
England Historical and Genealogical Register, XH, 229.) But their real purpose was 
necessarily known to many, as any delay in their use would have nullified the expected 
advantage. They are also perhaps the foundation of similar fanciful stories, told ef 
earlier months of the siege, preserved in Elkanah Watson's Men and Times of the 
Resolution and Hale's Memories of a Hundred Years, I, 147- 

** The forts had been raised, testified an English officer, "with an expedition equal to 
that of the genii belonging to Aladin's wonderful lamp." — Almon's Rememhrancer, HI, 
106. 

" To Lord Dartmouth, American Archi-ves, 4th, V, 458-459. 



2o6 ARTEMAS WARD [^^€48 

Americans could be ousted, Boston was no longer a safe berth 
for either His Majesty's navy or army. 

Howe still held Lord Dartmouth's instructions to abandon 
the town, but he was in not much better position to carry them 
out than he had been four months earlier. His recent prepa- 
rations availed him little, for he was still short of shipping. 
A divided removal (which, four months earlier, he had de- 
clared to be dangerous) was now impossible with the Ameri- 
cans intrenched on Dorchester Neck. An undivided removal 
meant, at best, leaving behind great quantities of military 
and other supplies. And, then, the disgrace 1 Instead of a 
voluntary evacuation of the town, a flight from it enforced 
by the muzzles of colonial cannon. 

Howe's decision was to fight, and the Americans cheerfully 
made ready to receive him. Washington rode up the hills to 
view the works, and reminded the men that it was the anni- 
versary of the "Boston Massacre." And Putnam's division 
assembled along the Charles River, awaiting the word to 
man the boats for a spectacular raid upon the town. 

The English essayed the effect of artillery on the American 
intrenchments : 

"They endeavored to Elevate their Cannon so as to reach 
our works, by sinking the Hinder wheels of the Cannon into 
the Earth, but after an unsuccessful Fire of about two Hours, 
they grew weary of it & Desisted."'*^ 

The Americans intently watch also the other and more 
threatening English moves — the gathering of the boats, the 
marching of the companies to the wharves, the emptying of 
the boats into the transports. It looks as if Howe intends 
to duphcate Gage's methods at Breed's Hill, and the Ameri- 
cans laugh and pray that the "Philistines" will give them 
another such opportunity. 

As Washington turned his eyes from the Boston shore to 
scan the American works, built with an expedition that had 

** John Sullivan to John Adams, March 15, 1776, Massachusetts Historical Society 
Proceedings, XIV, 283. 



ijt6'\ DORCHESTER HEIGHTS 207 

staggered the trained soldiers of Great Britain and manned 
with those same indomitable New Englanders who had made 
history at "Lexington and Concord" and again at Bunker 
Hill — anxious now only that their enemy should "come on" : 
he himself said, "I never saw spirits higher, or more ardor 
prevailing . . . our officers and men appeared impatient for 
the appeal" — he probably felt compunction for the harsh 
epithets he had applied to the New England troops. The 
project, the preparation, the command, the engineers, and 
the work (and the Bunker Hill lesson back of them) were 
all of New England's sons; and their result was to mean 
much glory for the Virginian who had aspersed them. 

The neighboring hills — as also the housetops and wharves 
of Boston — are crowded with spectators awaiting taut-nerved 
the commencement of a drama that bids fair to be bloodier 
even than the carnival of death on Breed's Hill. But Howe 
remembers too vividly the price to be paid for storming 
American intrenchments with daylight sighting American 
muskets. The five regiments filling the transports are to go 
first to Castle Island. From there, during the night, to be 
landed on the easterly point of Dorchester Neck; while other 
regiments, direct from Boston, disembark "on the side next 
the town." Then, from the two directions, a simultaneous 
assault upon the works : no pausing to fire this time — but a 
quick short march and a rapid clambering of the hills — hop- 
ing that in the uncertain moonlight the rush of English 
bayonets may offset American marksmanship."*^ 

But this is unknown to the American commanders and they 
watch with disappointment the ebbing of the tide which they 
had thought would bring the foe to them. 

What is the British intention? That is the question in 
every one's mind as the afternoon wanes. The redcoats had 

*^ Hoiuc's Orderly Book, 225; Howe to Lord Dartmouth, American Archives, 4th, V, 
459; Diary of a British Officer, Atlantic Monthly, XXXIX, 553; Lieutenant-Colonel 
Kemble's Journal, Kemhle Papers, I, 71. 



2o8 ARTEMAS WARD \_Age 48 

not been filled into the transports for nothing. Where is the 
blow to be struck? 

There are several possibilities in addition to that of a 
direct attack upon Dorchester Heights. As one, the enemy 
may land at some nearby point to the south and attempt to 
break through the American right from the rear. 

Washington returned to Cambridge early in the afternoon 
and from there he wrote to Ward requesting him to send 
"orders to Braintree, Hingham & that way, that a good 
lookout be kept there, and if any discoveries respecting 'em 
can be made, that instant notice thereof be brought to Head- 
Quarters." He did not "much suspect their going to or land- 
ing at those places," but he believed that "the utmost vigi- 
lance & care" were necessary, "as their embarkation certainly 
is to answer some purpose." 

Because of the unreliability of night signals, he also re- 
quested Ward to keep "Two Expresses with Horses in con- 
stant readiness" to communicate any motions of the enemy 
which he deemed in any way important, and "the same will 
be done here.""^^ 

The English transports went down the bay in the evening, 
a floating battery towed along to cover their landing; but a 
March tempest was brewing and it came up with such fury 
that three of the vessels were driven ashore on Governor's 
Island. The proposed assault became impossible. "[No] 
boat cou'd possibly land."^^ 

In Boston that night the people again cowered in their 
homes as the wind rocked their walls, broke their windows, 
and blew down their sheds and fences.^^ "A wind more vio- 
lent than any thing I ever heard," an English oflicer wrote 

^"Washington (by Harrison) to Ward, March 5, 1776. — Original letter owned (1921) 
by Roxa Dix Southard, Groton, Mass. 

"Diary of a British Officer, Atlantic Monthly, XXXIX, 553. 

°" Letters ami Diary of John Roive, 300. "A hurrycane, or terrible sudden storm." — 
Newell's Journal, Massachusetts Historical Society Collections, 4th, I, 272. "In the 
night was as violent a storm as was ever known." — Dr. John Warren's Journal, John 
C. Warren's Genealogy of Warren, 94. 



777^] DORCHESTER HEIGHTS 209 

home. "A violent storm," wrote Washington. "Almost a 
hurricane," says Heath. 

The cannonading, too, started afresh, giving promise of 
war on the morrow. 

The alarmed residents of Boston were, nevertheless, vastly 
more comfortable than the Americans upon the Dorchester 
hills ! There had been no time to set up the barracks which 
a few days later ameliorated conditions. There was nothing 
to protect the men from the weather save a few apple trees 
— "a miserable shelter from storms and March winds." "I 
never before felt such cold and distress, as I did this night"; 
"[we were] drenched by the copious rain, exhausted by 
severe exertion" : such are the comments that have come 
down to us in the diaries and reminiscences of officers and 
privates. '''" 

The wind and sea still ran high in the morning, and the 
transports were ordered back to Boston. The English had 
lost what little appetite they had at first felt for assailing the 
American position. They decided to give up the town, and 
Halifax was selected as the immediate destination of both the 
troops and the civilian tories.^^ 

Despite the earlier rumors that Howe planned to abandon 
the capital, the crisis which thus confronted them — definite 
this time, an inexorable fact — came as a crushing blow to the 
loyalists cooped within it. But the patriots of the beleaguered 
town rejoiced in great relief. "Blessed be God our redemp- 
tion draws nigh," cried Deacon Newell. 

The wind and sea continued rough all Wednesday, but the 

'^^ Journal of Lieutenant Isaac Bangs, 12, 16; Daniel McCurtin's Journal, Papers 
relating chiefly to the Maryland Line, 33 ; Diary of Samuel Richards, 26—27. 

" The decision was not formally reached until Thursday, March 7 (Howe to Lord 
Dartmouth, American Archives, 4th, V, 458), and Howe in Wednesday's general orders 
had explained that he desired "the Troops may know that the intended expedition last 
Night was unavoidably put off by the badness of the weather" — but the intention to evacu- 
ate the town was of general knowledge on Wednesday, among both army men and civil- 
ians. — Newell's Journal, Massachusetts Historical Society Collections, 4th, I, 272 ; Letters 
and Diary of John Rotve ; Diary of a British Officer, Atlantic Monthly, XXXIX, 553; 
letter in Almon's Remembrancer, \\\, 106; letter of Major-General Hugh, Earl Percy, 
who was to have commanded the English assault, Letters of Hugh, Earl Percy, 66. 



2IO ARTEMAS WARD \_Age 48 

weather was not severe enough to hinder Thomas In his work. 
The American fortifications were strengthened, and several 
additional guns were hauled over the causeway and up the 
hills — the performance being closely observed by the English 
officers. 

On Thursday, the seventh, the three days' emergency mili- 
tia returned to their homes, and the responsibility of main- 
taining both the Roxbury lines and the new positions on 
Dorchester Neck rested almost entirely on Ward's original 
Roxbury division. Two regiments from the center had 
joined him early on the fifth, but it was considered unwise to 
detach any more men from the center or any at all from the 
left. This double labor involved heavy demands on his men's 
energy and willingness — many "were obliged to be on Duty 
two Days & Nights successively"^^ — but they stood the test 
well. 

On March 9 a battery was planted to the north of the east 
point of the peninsula as a special menace to the British ship- 
ping. Two^*^ attempts were made to fortify Nook Hill also, 
but they were both frustrated by artillery fire. 

There was no swerving from the English decision to leave 
Boston. On the eighth, the very day that a committee of Bos- 
ton civilians informed Washington of the intended evacuation 
and of Howe's promise not to harm the town if his troops 
were not harassed in departing, Howe attempted to stimulate 
the military spirit of his men by requiring In general orders 
"The Commanding Officers of Corps to give the strictest 
Attention to the regularity and Discipline of their respective 
Corps ... as the Troops may be hourly called upon to 

^'Lieutenant Bangs {Journal, 15, 16) wrote feelingly of the "Fatiegues & Hardships 
that were underwent by that part of the Army which were Stationed at Roxbury from 
the time of our first building upon the Hill." . . . Because of the lack, at first, of 
barracks, no regiment could be stationed there as a permanent garrison, and the "25 Hun- 
dred Men or thereabouts" which "it was absolutely necessary to keep constantly upon 
the Hills . . . must be drawn from those at Roxbury. This Party together with 
the Guards at Roxbury kept half of our Men on duty constantly, & many being taken 
ill about that time, some with what we termed The Hill Fever & others with real 
Sickness, many Men were obliged to be on Duty two Days & Nights successively." 

^ Rc-volutioiiary Journal of Col. Jcduthan Bald-win, March 9 and 12, 1776. 



777^] DORCHESTER HEIGHTS 211 

Attack the Enemy in case a proper Opening should offer 
where the Rebels Least Expect it" ; but, excepting that, 
his orders, commencing with March 7, were all directed to 
getting away from Boston as speedily as possible and to at- 
tempts to maintain discipline amid the hurry and its con- 
comitant disorder,^^ 

The English officers were, however, overwhelmed by the 
multitude of details thrust upon them in the sudden necessity 
of quickly setting the army and its supplies, and the loyalists 
and their families and effects, upon the voyage; and their 
preparations consumed so much time that Washington feared 
that the delay held some sinister motive — perhaps that Howe 
"has some design of having a brush before his departure and 
is only waiting in hopes of find'g us off our Guard"^^ or of 
"attempting by some bold stroke in some measure to wipe off 
the ignominy" of his retreat f^ perhaps the expectation of 
reinforcements sufficiently large to shift the advantage won 
by the Americans. 

Howe suffered from similar nervousness concerning the 
American plans. Flis "preparations to be gone" were, it is 

^^ Extracts from Hoivc's Orderly Book: 

March 7. — "The Regts are to bring immediately all the Barrack furniture, but such 
as are Judg'd necessary for the Voyage to the Store in Kings Street, . . . Every 
Regt is to take care of the Hand Carts they have; the Wheels are to be fastened in the 
Quarters of the several Transports, these being very necessary for a future service, and 
not easily replaced." 

"Each Regt to receive 18 Butts of Porter at Cowper's Meeting House, to morrow 
Morning at 10 O'Clock, to be put on board their respective Transports, & issued to the 
Troops after they embark." 

March 10. — "The Commanding Officers of Corps to be responsible to have all their 
Sick, Convalescents, & Women, on board their respective Transports before Six O'Clock 
this Evening 

March 11. — "The Troops to have all their Baggage on board Ship by five O'Clock 
this Afternoon, if any is found on the Wharfs after six, it will be thrown into the Sea." 

March 14. — "The Officers & Soldiers on board Ship not to come on Shore on any 
Account without the General's express Permission." 

"The Commander in Chief finding notwithstanding the Orders that have been given 
to forbid Plundering, Houses have been forced open & robbed, he is therefore under a 
Necessity of declaring to the Troops, that the first Soldier who is caught plundering, 
will be hanged on the Spot." 

'^^ March 10, 1776, Washington (by Harrison) to Ward. — Original letter, Artcmas 
Ward MSS. 

''" March 12, 1776, Washington (by Palfrey) to Ward. — Original in the possession 
(1921) of Ward Dix Kerlin, Camden, N. J. 



2 12 ARTEMAS WARD VAge 48 

said, "much accelerated by an accidental fire" in the Prospect 
Hill barracks "which Howe supposed was an alarm to the 
inhabitants" of the surrounding towns to come in to storm 
Boston.*"^ 

On March 13 Washington wrote to Ward that he wished 
to consult with him, Thomas, and Spencer "upon many mat- 
ters," and as he did "not think it prudent at this time" that 
they "should be so far as Cambridge" from their posts, he 
would come over to Roxbury to meet them/'^ 

At this council, held in Ward's headquarters the same 
morning and attended also by Putnam, Heath, Sullivan, 
Greene, and Gates, it was decided to fortify Nook Hill "at 
all events" if the English army should not remove on the mor- 
row; and also to dispatch five regiments and the rifle battalion 
to New York because of the probability that Howe would 
make that town his next point of attack. 

On Saturday night (March 16) the Nook Hill resolution 
was successfully put into effect and the American officers felt 
confident that the new array of cannon thus planted at point- 
blank range would compel Howe's immediate removal. 

Fortunately for the English commander and his forces — 
and for the town of Boston — it was not necessary to demon- 
strate its effectiveness. Howe had completed his arrange- 
ments. His ships were loaded to their capacity and he had 
on Saturday morning (7:30 A.M. and later) issued orders 
for the final embarkation — "the whole Garrison to be under 
Arms at 4 O'Clock" Sunday morning "to be in readiness to 
embark when ordered. ""^^ 

During the night some of the English cannon not taken 
on board barked noisily at the Americans laboring on Nook 

""Edmund Qiiincy to John Hancock, March 25, 1776, Massachusclls Hisloncal Society 
Proceedings, IV, 27—28. 

"'Washington (by Moylan) to Ward, March 13, 1776. — Original in the possession 
(1921) of Ward Dix Kerlin, Camden, N. J. 

"' Numerous histories aver that it was the fortification of Nook Hill on the night of 
March 16 that decided Howe to leave Boston early in the morning of March 17. He 
had, though, as noted above, given his orders for the abandonment of the town a number 
of hours before the detachment of the party which planted the Nook Hill batteries. 



777^] THE EVACUATION OF BOSTON 213 

Hill, but they were chiefly old iron guns destined to be spiked, 
and their seeming ferocity was only a temporary precaution, 
for by daybreak the abandonment of the capital was well on 
toward fulfilment — a fleet of boats carrying redcoats and 
tories out to the waiting vessels. 

All the early hours of that memorable Sunday morning the 
final scenes of the evacuation continued without interruption, 
and about nine o'clock the last boats shoved off from the 
wharves. 

Quickly thereafter*^^ Ward entered the town over Boston 
Neck, riding at the head of five hundred troops under the 
immediate command of Colonel Learned. 

At about the same time a detachment of Putnam's men 
debarked on the west side of the peninsula. 

The capital of Massachusetts after eleven months' siege 
thus returned to the control and possession of the provincial 
patriots. 

A strangely silent town, though, it appeared to its armed 
redeemers tramping through its narrow streets. "The enemy 
had, very properly, forbid the inhabitants to leave their houses 
during the embarkation, and from this cause or their ignor- 
ance of his movements, or the timidity produced by their long 
residence with him, and the fear of reproach from their coun- 
trymen, the houses . . . continued shut up, and the 
town presented a frightful solitude in the bosom of a numer- 
ous population."®^ 

After a short stay in the delivered capital Ward returned 
to his headquarters in Roxbury, Putnam being installed in 
command of the town. A few days later he was succeeded 
by Greene. 

Washington did not yet feel sure that the English were 

"^ "It was almost ii o'clock before the Gates were opened": Jedediah Huntington 
to Captain Joshua Huntington, March 17, 1776. — Original letter, General Jedediah Hun- 
tington Letters, Connecticut Historical Society. "Our men . . . about noon . . . took 
possession of Boston": Reverend David Avery, March 17, 1776 (one of two entries, In 
different volumes, of that date). — Original diary, Connecticut Historical Society. 

^ James Wilkinson, Memoirs of My Oivn Times, I, 33. 



2 14 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 48 

reconciled to a submissive bloodless abandonment of Boston. 
The enemy's ships remained in the harbor and gave him "a 
strong violent presumption" that something was "meditat- 
ing" and made him "extremely apprehensive" that General 
Howe had "some scheme in view & designs of taking advan- 
tage of the hurry, bustle and confusion among our troops 
which he may immagine his departure to have occasioned." ^^ 

Again, on March 21, he wrote to Governor Trumbull of 
Connecticut, "For my own part, I cannot but suspect they are 
waiting for some opportunity to give us a stroke at a moment 
when they conceive us to be off our guard, in order to retrieve 
the honor they have lost."*''^ 

Washington's disquiet was very generally shared. "The 
enemy have not yet come under sail," wrote Abigail Adams, 
on Sunday noon, March 17. "I cannot help suspecting some 
design, which we do not yet comprehend. To what quarter of 
the world they are bound is wholly unknown; but 'tis gener- 
ally thought to New York, . . . From Penn's Hill we have 
a view of the largest fleet ever seen in America. You may 
count upwards of a hundred and seventy sail. They look like 
a forest." '^^ 

The delay concealed no plan of retaliation. The English 
continued In the roads because some of their ships needed re- 
pairing. But the Americans did not know this, and on March 
25 Washington wrote to Joseph Reed that he was "under 
more apprehension from them now than ever," and that they 
might be awaiting the dispersal of the militia at the end of the 
month as a favorable opportunity "to make a push . . . 
upon the back of our lines at Roxbury."*^^ 

None of these things happened, and on March 27 the 
greater part of the fleet set sail for Halifax. 

The first chapter of the Revolution thus came to a victor- 

"^ March 17, 1776, to Ward. — Original letter (by Harrison) in possession (1921) 
of Francis D. Fisher. 

^ Ford, Writings of fFashitigton, III, 485-486. 

"' Familiar Lcllcrs of John Adams and his Wife, 142. 

^^ Ford, Writings of Washington, III, 494. 



ijj6'\ THE EVACUATION OF BOSTON 215 

ious climax, England's plans for the subjugation of Massa- 
chusetts had utterly failed. The rebellious province had 
shaken itself free. 

But what if Washington had had his way, instead of Ward? 
A boat attack, or a musket assault across the ice, on a town 
"almost impregnable — every avenue fortified." Quebec on 
a larger scale ! Suppose the Americans had lost, as at Que- 
bec? Then — a broken army, accomplishing a miracle if it 
could even hold the enemy within the town. A great moral 
loss also, which might have obliterated the effect of Bunker 
Hill. Instead — the enemy driven out of the province, and 
the American forces, strength unimpaired, free to march to 
New York. 

The evacuation gave great impetus to the theory of inde- 
pendence. It bred converts even in the middle colonies, where 
- — eleven months after Lexington and Concord, and nine 
months after Bunker Hill — the word "Independence," so 
fraught with decisive finality, was still horrifying to many 
minds — was still to them much too closely allied with the 
ogres of treason and rebellion. 



CHAPTER XII 

March i8, lyyd-March 20, lyy/ : Age 48-4g 

Ward assumes the continental command in Boston. Because of ill 
health, he tenders his resignation. The Continental Congress 
accepts his resignation, but both Washington and the Congress 
request him to remain in command. He continues until relieved 
by Heath on March 20, 1777. 

GENERAL WARD'S health had declined to a some- 
what alarming extent during the first months of 1776.^ 
He had made no complaint while the outcome of the siege of 
Boston remained In doubt, but after the successful occupation 
of Dorchester Heights he felt compelled to retire from army 
life. Dorchester Heights had shifted the principal site of 
the struggle. The next step was to be a fight to hold New 
York against the enemy, and he was physically unequal to the 
responsibilities of his position In a province and under 
conditions alike unfamiliar to him. 

He waited until the enemy had evacuated the capital and 
then he wrote to Washington tendering his resignation, for 
"to eat the Continental bread & not do the duty Is what I am 
much averse to."^ 

He accompanied his letter to the commander-in-chief by 
one in similar strain to Hancock as President of the Conti- 
nental Congress.^ 

On Washington's comments on Ward's resignation rest the 

^ "Genl Ward's health being so precarious." — Joseph Ward to John Adams, March 14, 
1776, Massachusetts Historical Society Proceedings, XIV, 282. 
"March 22, 1776. — Original letter, Library of Congress. 
' American Archives, 4th, V, 467. 

216 



777^] IN THE EASTERN DEPARTMENT 217 

conventional stories of the ill feeling between the two men.'* 

^WASHINGTON'S COMMENTS ON WARD'S RESIGNATION. 

To Joseph Reed, April l, 1776: "Nothing of importance has occurred in these parts, 
since my last, unless it be the resignations of Generals Ward and Fry, and the re- 
assumption of the former, or retraction, on account as he says, of its being disagreeable to 
some of the officers. Who those officers are, I have not heard. I have not inquired. 
When the application to Congress and notice of it to me came to hand, I was disarmed 
of interposition, because it was put upon the footing of duty or conscience, the General 
being persuaded that his health would not allow him to take that share of duty that his 
office required. The officers to whom the resignation is disagreeable, have been able, 
no doubt, to convince him of his mistake, and that his health will admit him to be alert 
and active. I shall leave him till he can determine yea or nay, to command in this 
quarter." — Reed, Life and Correspondence of Joseph Reed, I, 179. 

To Charles Lee, May 9, 1776: "General Ward, upon the evacuation of Boston, and 
finding that there was a probability of his removing from the smoke of his own chimney, 
applied to me, and wrote to Congress for leave to resign. A few days afterward, some 
of the officers, as he says, getting uneasy at the prospect of his leaving them, he applied 
for his letter of resignation, which had been committed to my care ; but, behold ! it had 
been carefully forwarded to Congress, and as I have since learnt, judged so reasonable 
(want of health being the plea) that it was instantly complied with." [This statement 
is inaccurate, for the letter of resignation referred to — that of March 22 — was never 
accepted by Congress. It was not until Ward repeated his request for permission to 
retire tliat Congress, a month later, took action.] — Lee Papers, II, 13—14. 

WARD CONFRONTED WASHINGTON WITH ONE OF THE ABOVE LET- 
TERS? 

Following are the two chief forms of the story (unauthenticated — and, as it applies to 
Ward, entirely uncharacteristic — hut nevertheless persistently handed down by tradition) 
that Ward confronted Washington with a letter in which the Virginian had aspersed 
him: perhaps one of the two quoted above; perhaps a third which I have not come upon. 

"It is well known that Washington spoke of the resignation of General Ward, after 
the evacuation of Boston, in a manner approaching contempt. His observations, then 
confidentially made, about some of the other generals, were not calculated to flatter their 
amour propre or that of their descendants. It is said that General Ward, learning long 
afterwards of the remark that had been applied to him, accompanied by a friend, waited 
on his old chief at New York, and asked him if it was true that he had used such 
language. The President replied that he did not know, but that he kept copies of his 
letters, and would take an early opportunity of examining them. Accordingly, at the 
next session of Congress (of which General Ward was a member), he again called with 
his friend, and was informed by the President that he had really written as alleged. 
Ward then said 'Sir, you are no gentleman,' and turning on his heel quitted the room." 
— S. A. Drake, Historic Fields and Mansions of Middlesex, 260 (also, same page num- 
ber, in the same work later published as Old Landmarks and Historic Fields of Middle- 
sex and Historic Mansions and Highiuays around Boston). 

"Of his [Ward's] bravery there is no question, although Washington accused him of 
cowardice in leaving the service before Boston. Benjamin Stone, the first preceptor of 
Leicester Academy, gave me the following account of Ward's misunderstanding with 
Washington. Soon after the establishment of the Government at New York, Ward, 
then a member of Congress, came into possession of a letter written by Washington, in 
which the offensive charge was made. He immediately proceeded to the President's 
house, placed the paper before him, and asked him if he was the author of it. Wash- 
ington looked at the letter and made no reply. Ward said, 'I should think that the 
man who was base enough to write that, would be base enough to deny it,' and abruptly 
took his leave." [As a tiiinor correction, note that Congress sat in Philadelphia during 
both of Ward's terms.] — Reminiscences of the Reverend George Allen of Worcester, 42. 

A LEGEND OF WASHINGTON'S DESIRE TO MAKE AMENDS. 

The Massachusetts Historical Society possesses a letter from C. Gore to General 



2i8 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 48 

Washington was apparently glad to receive Ward's resig- 
nation as first major-general — its acceptance by the Conti- 
nental Congress would leave only Washington himself as 
superior in rank to Charles Lee — but he requested him 
(March 29) to take the command in Boston and, following, 
the general continental command in Massachusetts after the 
main army's departure for New York. High and peculiar 
responsibility would attach to the post, but it did not involve 
the rigors of a marching campaign, and Ward accepted the 
charge until some other general could be spared to take it 
over — continuing to place the public service above all personal 
consideration. 

It will be noted that neither Washington nor Ward per- 
mitted his personal sentiments to affect his sense of duty. 
Washington did not hesitate to ask, nor Ward to give. 

Regiment after regiment from the American camps around 
Boston was now marching toward New York, and on April 4 
Washington himself set out. 

On the same day Ward formally assumed the command 
in Massachusetts of both the land forces and the heterogene- 
ous little fleet in the continental pay. 

The fleet consisted of a few armed schooners, armed whale- 
boats, and floating batteries, etc. It had no vessels capable 
of coping with the larger British warships, but its schooners — 
both alone and in cooperation with privateers — were efl'icient 
in cutting out enemy supply ships — and, occasionally, trans- 
ports also. 

The New England fishermen— their customary livelihood 
wiped out by war — took with increasing zest to the occupa- 

Ward's son, Judge Artemas Ward, dated January 22, 18 19. It gives a conversation 
with Samuel Dexter as authority for the statement that Washington, on his retirement 
from public life, wrote to Ward denying that he had written "a letter published in the 
early part of the Revolutionary war, which contained Remarks injurious to the Reputation 
of General Ward," and expressing "in unequivocal Terms, the highest Regard for the 
character and Conduct of General Ward, in all the Departments of public Duty in 
which he had »cted." — Massachusetts Historical Society Proceedings, XII, 125. 

I have found neither contradiction nor affirmation of such a letter from Washington. 

It will be noted that Gore's letter gives a much earlier date for the disclosure of the 
contents of the Washington letter than do the traditional accounts. 



777^] IN THE EASTERN DEPARTMENT 219 

tion of privateering. Once essayed — and a prize or two se- 
cured — they found its hazards and irregularities much more 
to their taste than the regulations of army life.^ 

The land forces remaining for the protection of the harbor 
consisted of only four very lean regiments. Two were sta- 
tioned in Boston, one on the Charlestown peninsula, and one 
on Dorchester Neck. A fifth regiment had been left behind 
by Washington, but this also was weak in numbers — it had 
fewer than 300 men fit for duty — and was posted at Beverly 
to guard the prize vessels and their cargoes. 

Furthermore, southward with Washington had gone the 
bulk of military stores of every description, and practically 
all available teams. And the scant military stores that had 
been left behind lay scattered from Medford to Dorchester. 

It was thus with but the ill-equipped remnants of an army, 
garrisoned in a pest-ridden town, that Ward assumed the dan- 
gerous responsibility of holding the main seaport of New 
England against the possible return of the enemy's fleet. 

It was to be supposed that the English commanders would 
welcome an opportunity to efface the humiliation of having 
surrendered Boston — and several English ships, including one 
of fifty guns, remained in the vicinity of Nantasket in the 
lower harbor. Admiral Shuldham had stationed them there 
to warn incoming English vessels, but no one in the American 
councils could divine their orders, nor whether or not they 

° In succeeding years, the rich possibilities of a lucky cruise constituted a fruitful cause 
of desertion from the army. On June 9, 1779, Paul Revere complains to the Council that 
several of his men "have deserted, and gone in Privateers, and are now upon a Cruise, 
that one of them has sent in a Valuable Prize. That your [word omitted] has forbid 
the Agent paying any part of their share to them or Order. He therefore prays that 
the Honorable Court would take the matter into consideration, and pass such an Act as 
will hinder them from recovering their Wages or Prize Money. That they may have 
no inducement to Desert." — Goss, Paul Revere, H, 325. 

Only four days later. Colonel Shepard wrote: "Desertions have become so frequent 
as to be really alarming, and threatens the Ruin of the Brigade . . . about Forty Men 
have deserted from it within a few Months ; eight of whom went off last Night from 
one Regiment. . . . The Men seem to be chiefly induced to desertion by the Pros- 
pect of Gain in the Business of Privateering, and I have great Reason to think that, if 
they are not encouraged to desert by Commanders of Vessels, they are at least secreted 
by some of them after shipping themselves for a Voyage." — Original letter, Massachusetts 
Archives, CCI, 1 13. 



220 ARTEMAS WARD [^^€48 

would be, or expected to be, reinforced. If the English had 
returned, the American forces would have been hard put to it 
to prevent their retaking the town. 

Both military and civilian authorities realized the danger, 
and Washington refers to it in several letters.*^ 

The streets of Boston still presented a desolate appear- 
ance. The anniversary of Lexington and Concord came 
around and passed; yet, except for the men engaged on the 
defenses, there seemed scant life in the once busy little capital. 
The shutters continued up on most of the shops. Open to 
attack by the enemy, and infected with smallpox, the town 
offered few inducements for the return of its former inhabi- 
tants.'^ 

The conditions to be faced were enough to discourage the 
strongest. For a sick man, they constituted a cruel burden. 
Ward's disorder had taken a strong hold on him, but no one 
of sufficient experience and ability was available to relieve 
him and he manfully stood it out, although, as he later re- 
marked, he had "everything to do & nothing to do with."^ 

There was truly "everything to do." The forts raised by 
the English army in Boston had been designed against an 
enemy attacking from the mainland. The protection that 
Boston needed now was chiefly of forts to defend her from an 
enemy coming in by the sea. 

Ward immediately set about preparations for defense. 

His Order Book shows the close attention he gave the work 
and his earnest efforts to recover order and safety, meantime 
in patriotic terms exhorting both officers and men to their 
highest efforts. He made the most of his small command 
and by May 4 he could report that "the Forts on Fort Hill 

"April 29, 1776, to Ward, American Archives, 4th, V, 1 1 24, etc. 

'"The town yet looks melancholy; but few of the inhabitants being removed back 
into it, occasioned by its not being sufficiently fortified and garrisoned against any further 
attempt of the enemy, to which it now lies much exposed. The shops in general remain 
shut up." — April 19, 1776, Diary of Ezekiel Price, Massachusetts Historical Society 
Proceedings, VII, 272. 

* To the Continental Congress, September 20, 1776. — Copy in Artemas Ward MSS. 



777^] IN THE EASTERN DEPARTMENT 221 

in Boston, Charlestown Point, and Castle Point, are almost 
compleated, with a number of heavy cannon mounted in each; 
a work is in good forwardness on Noddles Island, and a De- 
tachment of the Army is at work at Castle Island repairing 
the Batteries there." ^ 

There were many rumors of British armadas on their way 
to devour the province. 

One, apparently well confirmed, was brought by a captain 
arriving from Europe on May 2.^" It told of the coming of 
a "fleet of 60 sail of transports" with instructions, if peace 
could not be arranged, "to risque every thing to Penetrate into 
the country," and, failing in this, "to burn and Destroy all in 
their power." 

Ward urged his men to still greater efforts. He set aside 
every detail of garrison duty that consumed the time of an 
able-bodied man and put his entire force — officers and pri- 
vates alike — to work on the defenses. ^^ Sundays and week- 
days the work went on unceasingly. 

Following closely after the report of a fleet from England, 
was another that the fleet and troops from Halifax were to 
return "and that they intended to land their Troops below 
and march to Boston by land while the Men of War made an 
attack by Water." This news came from a man "who ap- 
pears to be an honest American" and who had got it from 
an officer of the big English warship still in the lower harbor. 
"The same account was given by another man who made his 
escape from the same Man of War the night before last."^- 

° To Washington, American Archives, 4th, V, 1194. 

"Captain John Lee, arriving at Newbury, May 2, 1776. — Original letter, Richard 
Derby, Jr., to Ward, Artemas Ward MSS. 

^'^ Ward's Order Booh, May 3, 1776 — "every officer, non-commissioned officer and 
private oflf duty is to turn out to fatigue until further orders." 

^" Ward to James Warren, May 6, 1776. — Original letter, Massachusetts Archives, 
CXCIV, 376. 

Following is the Ezekiel Price diary entry of the incident, crediting the information to 
a deserter: "Monday May 6,- — Went to Boston. Examined papers at the custom-house. 
Reports of the day, — that a deserter came from the man-of-war below, who says that it 
was the talk among the officers of the ship that the troops and navy which fled from 
Boston were ordered back to Boston." — Alassachiisetts Historical Society Proceedings, 
VII, 254. 



222 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 48 

Both the threats proved to be phantoms — the new enemy 
fleet came not, and the old enemy fleet remained at its Hali- 
fax moorings for another month — and then sailed direct for 
New York; but the danger was real and called for constant 
vigilance. 

Not only Boston felt the menace of the English fleets. The 
inhabitants of other coast positions also earnestly solicited 
Ward for ordnance and ammunition to protect themselves 
against British attacks. 

Busy pens and busy tongues endeavored to widen the 
estrangement between Ward and Washington. More work 
had, probably, never been done in the same space of time by 
so comparatively small a force than on Boston's defenses dur- 
ing that April of 1776, yet there were found people to com- 
plain because a few hundred men had not been able to throw 
up fortifications as fast as six or seven thousand had done 
when the entire American arm.y was encamped around the city ! 

Their stories inspired Washington to write to Ward, April 
29, complaining that he heard that defense works "go on ex- 
ceedingly slow." His informants were prejudiced, for on 
May 13 Washington characterized as "very agreeable" 
Ward's account (May 4) of what had actually been 
accomplished. 

Again, May 2, Washington had written that he had "heard 
that the regiments stationed on Dorchester Heights and Bun- 
ker Hill are not employed in carrying on the works for the 
defence of Boston"; which Ward indignantly denied (May 9) 
— and requested the name of the author of the statement. We 
find a much more conciliatory communication from Washing- 
ton on May 16.^^ 

The Continental Congress had not acted on Ward's resig- 
nation, so he wrote again on April 12. He referred to his 
first letter, which had asked permission to give up his com- 
mand because of his poor health, and continued: "I must re- 

" The six letters of this correspondence are in American Archi-vcs, 4th, V, 1124; VI, 
436; V, 1194, 1174; VI, 401, 478. 



777^] IN THE EASTERN DEPARTMENT 223 

new my request for the same reason. I cannot be content to 
continue in office when I am conscious I am not able to do 
the duties."^'* 

Congress heeded this second request and on April 23 ac- 
cepted his resignation. 

Hancock, as President, notified Ward in a very cordial 
letter, declaring that "The Motives which first induced the 
Congress to appoint you a Major-general in the Continental 
Service would naturally make them regret your retiring from 
the Army. But when it is considered that in the course of 
your duty in that high rank you have acquitted yourself with 
Honor and Reputation, I am persuaded, the Reluctance they 
feel at your retiring is much increased," ^^ 

Hancock's letter reached Ward on May 4 and he imme- 
diately wrote to Washington, saying that "The sooner I am 
relieved the more agreeable it will be to me, as my health has 
declined much this Spring." ^^ 

The acceptance of his resignation availed Ward nothing, 
however. No competent general officer could be spared to 
take his place, and Washington perforce requested him, de- 
spite his sufferings and general ill-health, to continue in 
command. 

The end of May marked a noteworthy advancement of 
the harbor defenses. A new provincial regiment (Whit- 
ney's) and Crafts' artillery battalion, together with local 
volunteers and detachments from nearby towns, had added 
their labor to such good result that on June 8 Ward felt justi- 
fied in announcing a Sunday of general rest, "and that the 
officers lead their men without arms or musick to places of 
public worship." ^^ 

Of the routine difficulties of Ward's position, the most 

^''American Archives, 4th, V, 872. 

^^ Ibid., 1048, dated April 24. The original letter, owned by the Massachusetts His- 
torical Society, is dated April 26. 

^'■Ibid., 1 194. 

" Ward's Order Book. 



224 ARTEMAS WARD [Age 48 

vexing was the low state of the continental treasury. Numer- 
ous letters show the difficulty of obtaining money, both for the 
troops and for the crews of the continental privateers.^* 

In pleasurable contrast was the consideration of the prizes 
made by the privateers. Several were brought in during May 
and June despite the waiting English ships. 

The choicest of the prizes was, May 17, that of the Hope 
from Cork, captured by the schooner Franklin, James Mug- 
ford, Master, with a cargo of gunpowder and other military 
stores. Despite increasing domestic production, gunpowder 
was still a scarce article in the American army and such a 
cargo was worth its weight in gold. Five hundred barrels 
were quickly on their way to Norwich, Conn., to be for- 
warded to Washington at New York, together with two tons 
of musket balls, five hundred carbines, a thousand spades, etc. 

Three days later Ward had to write of Mugford's death 
in a desperate fight with the enemy. "He was run through 
with a lance while he was cutting off the hands of the Pirates 
as they were attempting to board" his ship, "and it is said 
that with his own hands he cut off five pair of theirs." ^^ The 
English were beaten off; several of their boats were sunk, 
and a number of their men killed. 

In a later dispatch Ward gives high credit to the crew, only 
seven in all, of the little Lady Washington which came to 
Mugford's aid. "She was attacked by five boats which were 
supposed to contain near or quite an hundred men, but after 
repeated efforts to board her they were beaten off by the in- 
trepidity and exertions of the little Company who gloriously 

'^ Oil April I I Ward wrote to Washineloii for instructions concerning the pay of the 
men on board the continental privateers.- — Original letter, Library of Congress. Washing- 
ton replied, April i8, that their wages ought to be paid out of the sales of the prizes 
taken, which should give "cash . . . much more than sufficient to answer the demands 
upon them." — American Archives, 4th, V, 977—978. This decision was reported to 
Captain Bartlett, agent for the privateers at Beverly, but he retorted, April 26, that 
though he was "well satisfied that there will be a Sufficiency when the Prizes are Sold, 
that does not Satisfy the Hungry belly at Present." — Original letter, Artemas Ward 
MSS. 

"To Washington, Mty 20, 1776, American Archi'ves, 4th, VI, 532. 



777^] IN THE EASTERN DEPARTMENT 225 

defended the Lady against the brutal Ravlshers of Lib- 
erty." ^o 

On May 30 Ward was again elected to the Council, but the 
General Court continued to sit at Watertown through the 
summer and the greater part of the following autumn, and 
he seldom found it possible to attend the Board there. 

In June the town and harbor forces were strengthened by 
the gradual filling up both of Whitney's provincial regiment, 
already referred to, and a second provincial regiment (Mar- 
shall's), the raising of which had been authorized early In 
May. 

These troops, enlisted to December i, did not come within 
Ward's command. As provincial regiments on a provincial 
establishment, they served under the direction of the General 
Court committee of fortification until August 2 when by 
Council appointment, Benjamin Lincoln became their general 
officer. (The committee of fortification had the supervision 
of the work on the harbor defenses whether done under the 
continental or provincial command.) 

The English ships lying in the channels remained, though, 
a prolific source of anxiety — adding to the general uneasiness 
which their presence excited, the direct annoyance that they 
rendered very risky both the Ingress and egress of American 
coasters. A sudden attack was planned to drive them away. 

It was completely successful. A detachment of five hun- 
dred men, under Colonel Asa Whitcomb, duplicated on a 
small scale the methods of Breed's Hill and Dorchester 
Heights. An evening trip to Long Island, June 13, landing 
at about 1 1 P.M. ; a busy night. Intrenching and mounting their 
cannon and a solitary 13-inch mortar; then, in the early morn- 
ing of June 14, an abrupt cannonading of the startled enemy. 

The attack was so unexpected that the Englishmen, with- 
out waiting to investigate the strength of their assailants, 
slipped their cables and quitted the harbor with all possible 

™ May 27, 1776, to Washington, /American Archi'ves, 4th, VI, 602. 



226 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 48 

speed; the provincial regiments posted on Pettick's (Ped- 
dock's) Island and Nantasket Head (Hull) giving them a 
few parting shots as they passed out. 

Opposite is a facsimile of Colonel Whitcomb's report to 
Ward. 

After the departure of the English ships many in Boston 
experienced an unwonted feeling of security, and the town be- 
gan to display some of its old-time activity. The shops opened, 
and there was much bustle along the docks. 

June was marked also by the American privateers' success 
in capturing several transports with Scotch Highlanders sail- 
ing to reinforce Howe : one transport was taken on the night 
of the seventh, two on the sixteenth, and one on the 
eighteenth. 

"Great numbers of spectators were in the streets" when 
Lieutenant-Colonel Campbell and the other officers of the 
second capture "passed up King Street, in their way to Gen- 
eral Ward's." ^^ It was a grateful sight to Boston eyes, a 
most welcome manifestation both of the activity of Massa- 
chusetts' sailors, and of Massachusetts' full possession of 
Boston harbor. 

The week of the twenty-second raised hopes of a still big- 
ger haul, for several privateer captains sent word that they 
had sighted eleven transports convoyed by a frigate. 

Ward improvised a squadron of the privateers in the har- 
bor and at nearby points. It was not large enough to attempt 
an ocean capture of so many sail, but he laid plans to make 
reasonably sure of the taking of the entire fleet if it should 
enter the roads. 

"Diary of Ezekiel Price, June 17, 1776, Massachusetts Historical Society Proceedings, 
VII, 258. A little less than a year later, Lieutenant-Colonel Campbell was exchanged 
for Ethan Allen, who had been taken prisoner by the English in September, 1775. The 
exchange, as also that of other prisoners, was effected by correspondence between General 
Ward and the English Major-General Eyre Massey. — Massey to Howe, January 12, 1778, 
Report on American Manuscripts In the Royal Institution of Great Britain, I, 178. 
Ward and Massey had thus as opposing generals renewed an acquaintance formed when 
they had together fought the French at Ticonderoga in 1758: Massey as a major of the 
British regulars, and Ward as lieutenant-colonel in the provincial forces. 









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From the original (6J4 inches in width), owned by Roxa Dix Southard, Groton, Mass. 

COLONEL WHITCOMB'S LETTER TELLING OF THE 

EXPULSION OF THE ENGLISH SHIPS FROM 

BOSTON HARBOR 



777^] IN THE EASTERN DEPARTMENT 227 

The ships hovered around for a week, and then set out to 
sea again without coming close enough for Ward's prepara- 
tions to endanger them — much to every one's disgust and 
disappointment! 

Abigail Adams wrote that they "kept us all with our mouths 
open, ready to catch them, but after staying near a week, and 
making what observations they could, set sail and went off, 
to our great mortification, who were [ready] for them in 
every respect." ^^ 

On June 30 Ward received an express from New Hamp- 
shire with an urgent prayer for gunpowder to replace the 
fifty-two barrels that she had lent the continental forces dur- 
ing the summer of 1775. Reports from Canada had warned 
her of a projected invasion by the enemy and his Indian allies. 

"The time necessary to obtain an order from General 
Washington to deliver us the powder lent," wrote Meshech 
Weare, President of the New Hampshire Council, "may de- 
cide the fate of our Frontiers & leave open the lower Settle- 
ments of your & our Colonies to the Devastations of Cana- 
dians and Savages — Therefore we entreat you (in this time 
of eminent danger) so far to dispense with the common 
method or rule in such cases, as to order the delivery of fifty- 
two barrels of gunpowder to the Bearer, Mr. Champney, to 
be forwarded by him to us; and we will without delay send to 
General Washington for his order to you for that purpose; 
which we are sensible will greatly recover the almost despair- 
ing spirits of our Brethren in the Frontiers, and be esteemed 
a Favor to the common cause and this colony in particular." ^^ 

Ward promptly cut the red tape of military regulations and 
endorsed Weare's letter with an immediate "order to ye 
Commissary for fifty two barrels of powder." 

Smallpox continued to infest Boston, and Ward, early in 
July, arranged for the inoculation of the two regiments 
(Whitcomb's and Phinney's) stationed in the town. 

^^ Familiar Letters of John Adams and his Wife, 201. 

'^June 29, 1776, Neiv Hampshire Provincial, State, and Town Papers, VIII, 178. 



228 ARTEMAS WARD [Affe48 

A few days later came the news from Philadelphia that the 
Continental Congress had declared the colonies independent! 
Ward marked the occasion by giving "America" as parole, 
and "Independence" as countersign, and on the following 
morning (July 17) the immortal Declaration was read at 
the head of the regiments. 

Simultaneously with, and closely following, the Continental 
Congress letter which enclosed the Declaration, Ward re- 
ceived orders from Washington, based on accompanying 
resolutions by the Continental Congress, ^^ that all of his five 
continental regiments march to join the northern and New 
York armies: the three "fullest regiments" to go to Ticon- 
deroga to strengthen the shm garrison there against the ex- 
pected English attempt to recover its possession; the other 
two regiments to serve under Washington's personal stand- 
ard in New York. 

All the regiments were to march to Norwich, Conn., to sail 
from there down Long Island Sound to New York; the troops 
destined for Ticonderoga going thence up the Hudson, it 
being "the opinion of all the officers, that it will be better for 
the whole, as well the three intended for the northward as 
those to reinforce the troops here, to take this route in 
preference to any other."^^ 

An English fleet swung in New York's lower harbor, and 
Howe's Boston army, with other troops, was encamped on 
Staten Island; but Washington and his council felt that the 
Hudson was safely held by the hulks blockading, and the guns 

* Journals of the Continental Congress : 

July 5, 1776 — "Resolved, That General Washington be empowered, if he shall judge 
it adviseable, to order three of the fullest regiments, stationed in Massachusetts bay, to 
be immediately marched to Ticonderoga ; and that an equal number of the militia of that 
state, be taken into pay, and embodied for its defence, if the government of Massachusetts 
bay judge it necessary." 

July 8, 1776 — "Resolved, That General Washington be vested with discretionary 
power to call to his assistance, at New York, such of the continental regiments in the 
Massachusetts bay, as have not already received orders to march to Ticonderoga; and 
that the general court of that province be requested to supply their places with militia, 
if they think it expedient." 

^July II, 1776; received in Boston July 15. — American Archives, 5th, I, 194. 



777^] IN THE EASTERN DEPARTMENT 229 

sweeping, the approaches to both the East and North rivers. 
It was thought by all "that there remained scarcely a pos- 
sibility that the passage could be forced, by vessels exposed to 
such a tornado of shot and shell as would be hurled upon them 
in the attempt." ^^ 

Ward quickly had three regiments equipped and ready for 
marching. Hutchinson's and Sargent's set out on July 18, 
and Glover's on July 20. Whitcomb's and Phlnney's regi- 
ments were perforce held over to recover from their smallpox 
Inoculation.^'^ 

The same week (on July 18) "Independency" was for- 
mally declared "from the Balcony of the Council Cham- 
ber," ^^ with simple impressive ceremonies which Ward had 
assisted in arranging as both continental commander and a 
member of the Council committee. 

The smallpox had prevented the people of nearby towns 
from coming in, as was their general custom when any affair 
of importance was held in the capital, but "all the inhabitants 
assembled" and stood in absorbed attention as the proclama- 
tion was read; breathing in every word of that document of 
political freedom which had grown from the seed planted 
and chiefly nurtured by the bold spirits of their own province. 

"When in the course of human events," began the orator, 
"it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political 
hands which have connected them with another. . . ." 

And so the reading proceeded: clearly, deliberately, and 
resolutely to the concluding pledge, made "with a firm reliance 
on the protection of Divine Providence," of "our Lives, our 
Fortunes, and our Sacred Honor." 

^* Field, Battle of Long Island, Memoirs of the Long Island Historical Society, II, 125. 

" This was before the days of cowpox vaccination. Inoculation then meant the intro- 
duction of human smallpox virus into the system. It was often very severe, and some- 
times disastrous, in its eflfect because of the numerous impurities of the virus. The 
patient, unless isolated, also became a fruitful source of infection. The men's recovery 
after inoculation was followed by thorough "cleansing" as an essential precaution against 
carrying the disease into the other American armies. "Cleansing" consisted In the liberal 
use of sulphur, pitch (or tar or rosin), vinegar, and soap. 

'^"Letters and Diary of John Rowe, 313. 



230 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 48 

As the reading ended, a cry went up, "God save our Amer- 
ican States," and then "three cheers which rent the air. The 
bells rang, the privateers fired, . . . the cannon were dis- 
charged . . . and every face appeared joyful." "Thus ends 
royal authority in this State. And all the people shall say 
Amen." 29 

Brave words and high thoughts, nobly expressed! But 
speedily to be subjected to the test of severe trials and cruel 
discouragement. 

As a foretaste of disaster, came a new message from 
Washington^*^ changing the orders for the two remaining 
regiments getting ready to march. They must go overland to 
Ticonderoga, instead of by way of Norwich, New York, and 
the Hudson River. The three regiments that had set out for 
Ticonderoga by the latter route must remain with the New 
York army, for two EngHsh warships had made their way 
into and up the Hudson — neither checked by the great prep- 
arations made to thwart just such an attempt nor seriously 
damaged by the furious cannonade poured at them by the 
American batteries — and they cut off all communication with 
the north by its waters. 

The news of the easy forcing of the Hudson bred a great 
host of misgivings through the country. Patriot eyes anx- 
iously followed all reports and rumors from the new seat of 
war. "Great is our Solicitude for you and the Army under 
your Command at New York," wrote Ward to Washington, 
August 19. "We are in constant expectation of the Enemy's 
making a violent attack. May the God of Armies give you 
Success !"^^ 

Whitcomb's regiment set out for Ticonderoga on August 
8, and Phinney's on the ninth. Their departure left only the 
two state regiments (Whitney's and Marshall's) and the 
train (Crafts') in the vicinity of Boston — not enough men to 

""Abigail Adams, July 21, 1776, Familiar Letters of John Adams and his TVife, 204. 
^^ July 19, 1776, American Archives, 5th, I, 451. 
^^ American Archives, 5th, I, 1075. 



i'jj6'\ IN THE EASTERN DEPARTMENT 231 

make anything beyond a pretence of garrisoning the town and 
harbor fortifications. To reinforce them, the Council issued 
a call for every twenty-fifth man in the training-band and 
alarm lists of every town in east and central Massachusetts 
(excepting only Dukes and Nantucket counties) and in two 
of the three counties which then comprised the present state 
of Maine, to serve until December i under the continental 
(Ward's) command. 

As the men came in they were formed into two regiments 
under Colonels Dike and Francis. 

Ward during these several months had continued in the 
command : always about to be relieved, but the relief always 
failing; his resignation officially accepted, but the duties and 
responsibilities still adhering to him; retaining his post at 
Washington's repeated requests, despite a serious turn to his 
sickness which for a time confined him closely to his room, 
but refusing to draw any salary because he held no official 
status. 

There were many objections — both public and personal — 
to this irregular tenure, and as there was still no one else both 
competent and available for the post. Congress clarified the 
situation by a special request, August 21, to Ward that he 
remain ;^^ and an order, entered November 7, defining his 
rank as that of a "major-general commanding in a separate 
department." 

President Hancock's letter (August 26) accompanying and 
emphasizing the request, concluded with the assertion that 
Ward's readiness to comply with the wishes of his country 
gave him the "strongest reason" to believe that he would 
not resist "its application at this juncture. "^^ 

It is a high tribute to Ward that, in spite of his 111 health, 
the embarrassing division of military authority In Boston, and 

^'^ Journals of the Continental Congress, August 21, 1776 — "Resolved, . . . That 
Major General Ward be authorized & requested if his Health will permit to continue in 
the Command of the Forces in the Service of the United States, in the Eastern Pepart- 
ment, until further orders." 

^'^ American Archi-ves, 5th, I, 1157. 



232 ARTEMAS WARD [^^€48 

the animosity of the James Warren clique, his patriotism was 
relied upon to hold him in the continental command of the 
most important port under American control and a military 
position which at any time might have developed into one 
of paramount importance. 

On September 16 \^rd reviewed the "new-raised Com- 
pany of Independents," making "their first Appearance in 
their Uniforms (black, turned up with red). They per- 
formed the Exercise, various Manoeuvers and Firings, to the 
Universal Acceptance of the numerous Spectators."^'* 

This item has local interest even today after a lapse of 
nearly a century and a half, because the First Corps of Cadets, 
Massachusetts National Guard, is the direct legitimate 
descendant of those Boston "Independents" of 1776. 

The division of the port's military authority had worked 
passably well while Lincoln acted as chairman of the com- 
mittee of fortification and general of the state troops, but 
after Lincoln's appointment, September 16, to command in- 
stead the militia ordered to be raised to reinforce the army 
at New York, its evil possibilities very quickly became 
apparent. 

The fortification committee removed the cannon from 
Dorchester Heights to mount them elsewhere, and Ward pro- 
tested vigorously. "They are important posts and ought not 
to be destitute of proper ordnance and ordnance stores one 
day," he declared.^^ 

The Council Immediately instructed the committee "with- 
out delay" to equip the forts with ordnance of the same size 
as that removed, and followed this by an order transferring 
all the state troops to Ward's command. Notifying Ward of 
this action, the Council express the hope that it "will be agree- 
able to your Honor & that you for the service of the Common 

^* Independent Chronicle, September 19, 1776. The Company of Independents was a 
revival of the Governor's Company of Cadets, created in 1 74 1 by Governor Shirley. It 
had disbanded in 1774 because of the dismissal of its colonel, John Hancock, by Gov- 
ernor Gage. 

^September 30, 1776, American Archives, 5lh, II, 624. 



7/7^] IN THE EASTERN DEPARTMENT 233 

Cause will take these Troops under your Command & 
directions. "^^ 

Southward, American fortunes under Washington grew 
steadily blacker. 

High hopes and rejoicing had followed the evacuation of 
Boston. So pleasing indeed had the prospect appeared to 
England's European rivals, that France and Spain had stimu- 
lated and encouraged the surreptitious shipment of money 
and arms to the new "United States," and there was hope 
that they would openly enter the conflict. 

All this had been changed by the defeat at Long Island 
and the abandonment of New York: the American forces 
routed and driven back. 

Men of all classes again turned their faces toward and 
longed for "General Lee."^''^ Wherever Lee had been, he 
had won new laurels — or at least additional encomiums. It 
had lately been Lee in Virginia, Lee in the Carolinas, Lee in 
Georgia. We of today know that much of the credit for his 
successes belonged by right to others; but in the eyes of the 
revolutionists of 1776 he was the greatest of martial heroes. 

Congress hurried Lee to New York, and he found Wash- 
ington on Harlem Heights with the enemy manoeuvering to 
trap him and his army. In the days following, Lee confirmed 
and added to the army's high opinion of his ability by his in- 
spiring and successful command of the rear-guard which cov- 
ered the American retreat.^^ 

'"October 4, 1776, /American Archives, 5th, II, 886. 

*" "If General Lee should be at Philadelphia, pray hasten his departure — he is much 
wanted in New York": John Jay, Fishkill, N. Y., to Edward Rutledge, October 11, 
1776. — Johnston, Correspondence and Public Papers of John Jay, I, 93. And, shortly 
before. Colonel Malcolm had written to John McKesson, "General Lee is hourly ex- 
pected, as if from heaven, with a legion of flaming swordsmen." — Moore, The Treason 
of Charles Lee, 37. 

^* Joseph Reed to Charles Lee, November 21, 1776: "I do not mean to flatter, nor 
praise you at the Expence of any other ; but I confess I do think that it is entirely 
owing to you that this Army and the Liberties of America so far as they are dependant 
on it are not totally cut off. You have Decision, a Quality often wanting in Minds 
otherwise valuable ; and I ascribe to this our Escape from York Island, from Kingsbrldge 
and the Plains. . . . Nor am I singular in my Opinion ; Every Gentleman of the 
Family, the Officers and soldiers generally, have a Confidence in you — the Enemy con- 



234 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 49 

Ward's difficulties in fulfilling his responsibilities, both to 
the Continental Congress and to the state, increased with the 
coming of winter. The immunity which Boston had enjoyed 
since the evacuation, had rendered the Massachusetts Coun- 
cil as apathetic concerning defense as it had before been 
eagerly anxious. The enHstment terms of the regiments 
guarding the port expired December i, but up to November 
26 no action had been taken either to hold them over or to 
raise others in their place. 

Ward expressed himself strongly on the subject in a letter 
to Samuel Adams. "At present," he wrote, "It appears to 
me that after the last day of this instant, there will be no 
troops in and about Boston, excepting the train. All the 
others were raised for no longer time than the last of the 
month; and I cant find that there is any measures taken to 
raise others in their room, or even to desire them to continue 
longer in the service, although I have repeatedly mentioned 
it at the Board, and told them the consequence that would 
follow upon such delay, and also that I thought it my duty 
to Inform some of the members of Congress of this neglect. 
Should that be the case It will not do for me to continue in 
command in this department, and have none to command but 
the train, neither will it be expedient for me to leave the com- 
mand, without directions from Congress, as it was at their 
request that I consented to continue in Service. 

"It is disagreeable to me to mention anything to the dis- 
advantage of the State to which I Belong; but In Justice to 
myself I have done it to you, In confidence." ^^ 

On November 26 Ward again laid a formal application 
before the Council^*^ and this time his warning was In some 
degree heeded. Reenlistments were opened for two regi- 

stantly inquire where you are, and seem to be less confident when you are present." — 
Lee Papers, II, 293. 

'"November 17, 1776. — Original letter, Samuel Adams Papers, New York Public 
Library. 

** Original letter, Massachusetts Archives, CCXI, 205. 



iyj6'\ IN THE EASTERN DEPARTMENT 235 

ments for the local defense. A small garrison, but better 
than none. 

The decision was only a few days old when reports reached 
Boston that the English commanders intended to profit by 
the defenseless condition of the capital and were directing 
their forces — land and naval — for a sudden, overwhelming 
assault upon it. 

Apprehensions were wrought to the point of real alarm by 
news of the English seizure of Newport. Word was mo- 
mentarily expected that an enemy army was marching on 
Boston. 

Several hundred militia were called in for the defense of 
the harbor, and between three and four thousand, quickly 
gathering, set out toward Rhode Island to help hold the red- 
coats in check. 

So serious was the perturbation of the state authorities that, 
December 7, on the excitement of the early reports of the 
movements of the English fleet, a committee from the House 
of Representatives waited on Ward with an offer to assist 
him in the removal of his military stores.^^ 

Ward did not accept the suggestion — instead, instructing 
Colonel Crafts, his artillery officer, to see that all was "in 
order for action in case the enemy should attempt anything 
this way." ^2 

The English commander (General Clinton) held, however, 
no instructions to essay a winter campaign in New England, 
or even to push any considerable distance beyond his lines in 
the vicinity of Newport. He was content to await develop- 
ments in the spring. Then, as the first of the "operations of 
the next campaign," Howe had proposed to Secretary Ger- 
main "an offensive army of ten thousand rank and file" to 
take possession of Providence and thence to penetrate "into 

*^ This step had shortly before been suggested by Charles Lee in a letter to James 
Bowdoin, as president of the Massachusetts Council. — November 25, 1776, Lee Papers, 
II, 312. 

^Ward's Order Book, December 9, 1776. 



236 ARTEMAS WARD [^^e ^g 

the country toward Boston, and, if possible, to reduce that 
town."^3 

Nor, on their part, could the Americans make any imme- 
diate attempt to oust Clinton. Even if the season had been 
propitious, there was no available force of sufficient strength. 
So, to the chagrin of the people of Rhode Island and of the 
continent generally, the English troops settled down in undis- 
puted possession. 

The winter had brought with it improvement in Ward's 
health, and (the General Court having returned to Boston 
on November 12) he took an increasingly important part in 
the Council deliberations and activities. So diversified soon 
became the calls upon his time and judgment in the military 
affairs of both the state and the continent, that Knox, visiting 
Boston a few weeks later, remarked that "whether he acts 
as a councilor of the Massachusetts or a continental general 
is difficult to say."^'* 

Northward, the situation had temporarily improved. 
Carleton, the English commander-in-chief in Canada, had 
come down to, and occupied. Crown Point, destroying Bene- 
dict Arnold's gallant little fleet in his stride; but the fame of 
Arnold's preparations had delayed his start and, with the 
winter upon him, he gave up for the moment the design 
to recover TIconderoga for the King. Instead, abandoning 
Crown Point, he turned back to Canada and winter quarters. 

To the south, though, the American cause has grown sin- 
ister. We have had the loss of Fort Washington and the 
surrender of its garrison; and we see Washington with the 
remnants of his army fleeing through New Jersey into Penn- 
sylvania. And Charles Lee holding aloof with the larger 
force under his command — all but Ignoring Washington's 

*^ November 30, 1776, American Archives, 5th, III, 926. Three weeks later, Howe 
inclined to the postponement of "the offensive plan towards Boston" until the arrival of 
reinforcements from Europe — not because he had discarded the project but because the 
growth of tory sentiment in Pennsylvania favored the first spring movement being made 
in that quarter. — December 20, 1776, American Archives, 5th, III, 1317-1318. 

** Drake, Henry Knox, 41; Brooks, Henry Knox, 87. 



777^] IN THE EASTERN DEPARTMENT 237 

need of reinforcements and his orders to join him, and plan- 
ning an independent attack on the British which should fur- 
ther enhance his personal distinction and further detract from 
Washington's. 

It was supremely fortunate for the United States that, in 
the midst of his dreams of supremacy, Lee was, on December 
13, captured by Harcourt at Basking Ridge. Let us call it 
a direct dispensation of Providence. To merely pass it by, 
saying that Lee was careless in placing himself in so exposed 
a position, is not sufficient. Washington, near Elkton, in the 
following August (the twenty-sixth) was equally imprudent,'*^ 
but, happily for America, Lee was taken prisoner, whereas 
Washington was not. 

It is not improbable that a successful stroke by Lee at this 
juncture — viewed in the halo which he had gained, partly by 
his own efforts and partly by good fortune — would have suf- 
ficed to depose Washington. Lee then would undoubtedly 
have been given the chief command. Many possible results 
present themselves — and most of them evil. 

When Lee was returned in May of 1778 no such danger 
existed. Times and conditions had changed. 

But that metamorphosis of times and conditions was of 
the future. At the moment, his capture seemed another 
cruel blow to a reeling cause.'*^ The day before, the Con- 
tinental Congress had fled from panic-stricken Philadelphia. 
"If every nerve is not strained to recruit the new army with all 
possible expedition I think the game is pretty near up," Wash- 
ington admitted to his favorite brother, John Augustine.^^ 

*^ Alemoirs Jit General Lafayette, First Paris edition, I, 21—22 (dififerent page num- 
bers in some other editions) ; F. V. Greene, Life of Nathanael Greene, 79-80; G. W. 
Greene, Life of Nathanael Greene, I, 443-444. 

*" "Our cause has received a severe blow in the captivity of General Lee." — Washing- 
ton to Lund Washington, December 17, 1776. "I feel much for the loss of my Country 
in his Captivity." — Washington to the Continental Congress, December 15, 1776. Ford, 
Writings of Washington, V, 79, 1 00. 

"December 18, 1776. — Ford, Writings of Washington, V, ill. "My situation and 
that of our cause is critical, and truly alarming," Washington wrote to Heath on De- 
cember 21, 1776. — Ford, Writings of Washington, V, 125. 



238 ARTEMAS WARD [yiffe^g 

But Washington's courage of spirit was inexhaustible. The 
short span of one week later he smashed the Hessians at 
Trenton, suddenly and with overwhelming success; and then 
struck again at Princeton: and the American cause, respond- 
ing instantly to the magic of reviving hope, throbbed with new 
life. True, the flame in the torch of its independence burned 
low, but the torch was in the resolute hands of a chief who 
through trials and defeats and adversity was becoming one of 
the select company of the world's great men. i 

The dramatic forcefulness of Washington's success halted 
the dangerous swing of public opinion into the tory camp and 
held patriot criticism in check for many months. On the 
enemy, and in other foreign circles, it reacted still more 
strongly. It compelled a radical change in the disposition of 
the English troops in New Jersey; and its narration, reverber- 
ating through the courts and politics of Europe, created 
much the same effect as had been wrought by Bunker Hill. 

As the year 1777 opened, great anxiety was bred in Boston 
by reports that the English planned a winter attack upon 
Ticonderoga, hoping to profit by the weakness of the 
American garrison there. 

Ward (January 9) directed the colonels of four regiments 
recruiting — including Francis' — to march their men north- 
ward "in small detachments" as quickly as they could be en- 
listed. He also wrote to Meshech Weare of New Hamp- 
shire urging the dispatch of two regiments "with all possible 
expedition" — to march them "by companies or half com- 
panies as fast as they can be raised." "^^ 

On January 28 Ward renewed his request to the Conti- 
nental Congress to appoint some other officer In his place.^^ 

Among the reasons prompting him was the very low ebb 
of his garrison in Boston as the result of the necessities of 
Ticonderoga. Despite Congress's desire that he continue in 

*^ Neiv Hampshire Provincial, State, and Totvn Papers, VIII, 462. 
*» MS. draft, Ward's Order Book. 



777^-77] IN THE EASTERN DEPARTMENT 239 

the post, he felt uneasy at drawing the salary of a major- 
general in a separate department while commanding so slen- 
der a force. "I conceive," he wrote, "it will be an unnecessary 
expense to the public for me to continue." 

More weighty and more impelling was a new danger en- 
gaging his attention — the breeding of a tory party in the 
hitherto strongly patriot counties of central and western 
Massachusetts. He wished to be freed from the routine of 
a garrison command, feeling that as a member of the Coun- 
cil without the continental appointment he could render wider 
and more useful service. 

On February 7 the General Court determined to probe the 
reports of seditious activity within the state. Declaring that 
it had been informed "that divers ill minded persons inimical 
to the Rights, Liberties and Happiness of the United States 
have concerted and are endeavoring to carry into execution 
Plans highly injurious to them," it passed a "Resolve for dis- 
covering Secret Plans" and appointed a committee with an 
appropriation "to be applied in the most secret Manner, ac- 
cording to their Discretion, for the Discovery thereof." 

James Warren, Aaron Wood, and Samuel Freeman con- 
stituted the committee, but Ward was intimately connected 
with its work and on the following day he rode to Worces- 
ter and, with Judge Levi Lincoln, set James Case of Leicester 
to work in the county to ferret out the underground plans 
taking shape.^*' 

Tory sentiment was also showing in considerable strength 
in the north. It was wide-spread in the colony "without a 
government" — the southern part of the present state of Ver- 
mont, which had rejected the jurisdiction of New York and 
had not yet developed its own government or institutions. Its 
unsettled condition offered a fertile, and comparatively safe, 
field for tory activities; and patriot committees sent earnest 
requests to General Ward for advice and assistance. One 

""James Case's statement. — TVorcester, Original Papers, I, loi, American Antiquarian 
Society. 



240 ARTEMAS WARD [J^e 49 

of March 4, from a committee of the town of Guilford, de- 
clared that "we that live in ye New Hampshire grants not 
being In any state labor under greater difficulties than any 
state by reson of having a grate many enemies to ye glorious 
cause of America." They had imprisoned two prominent and 
active torles In the Westminster jail, but they added, "We 
have so many Tories we fear they will soon be let out of jail 
. . . We should be very glad If your Excellency would take 
them under" your Custody and judge them according to ye 
marshal law . . . Pray send us sum directions what we shall 
do with them."^^ 

These conjoined circumstances made very welcome the news 
that Heath had been appointed In his place, and on March 
20 Ward gladly turned the garrison over to Its new general. 

" Original letter, Heath Papers, III, 267, Massachusetts Historical Society. Another 
letter, fifteen days later, from a committee representing a number of Vermont towns, 
asserted that "the greatest part of the people, viz., on these New Hampshire grants are 
true friends for the grand cause of America," but that "t6o many Enemies to the cause 
afor'sd being found and convicted as such, and at present being in such state of anarchy, 
having no place of Confinement for just offenders to the cause afors'd, [we] are utterly at a 
loss what to do. Therefore as in Duty bound for our own safety and the safety of the 
cause afores'd we humbly crave your Excellency's Counsel in Directing us to such 
Measures, as your Wisdom shall think proper." — Original letter. Heath Papers, HI, 307, 
Massachusetts Historical Society. 



CHAPTER XIII 

1777-1783: Age 4g-55 

The Secret Committee to offset tory intrigues. The Rhode Island 
expeditions. General Ward a delegate to the Continental Con- 
gress. The danger that a part of Massachusetts might return to 
British allegiance ; and the Hampshire County Committee. 
Ward's opinion of Hancock. The conclusion of peace and the 
full recognition of the independence of the United States. 

RELIEVED of the continental command, Ward was 
, able to devote full attention to the duties and respon- 
sibilities of the Council. 

With few exceptions he was present at every meeting of 
the Board during the next three years, and during much of 
that time acted as president of the Council — that is to say, 
as the executive head of the state, for there was no governor 
in Massachusetts during the War of the Revolution until 
after the election of September, 1780, under the new consti- 
tution. 

In the Massachusetts Archives are scores of letters in 
Ward's handwriting: copies carefully made by him of letters 
that he had still more carefully written to other state govern- 
ments; to continental generals on divers military matters; 
to officers concerning enlistments; to town officials regarding 
prisoners, the property of loyalists, etc. 

On May i (1777) General Ward, for the Council, and 
Generals Palmer and Preble of the House, were appointed 
"a Secret Committee to repair forthwith to Providence to 
advise with the Governor of that State and the Commanding 
officer of the Continental Troops there" concerning a pro- 
posed expedition against the enemy on Rhode Island. 

241 



242 ARTEMAS WARD [^^^49 

The committee at once set out In a coach and four, arriv- 
ing in Providence the next day. 

There, crowded into seventy-two hours, were consultations 
on the total number of troops needed for such an enter- 
prise; the proportion that the state of Rhode Island could 
raise; the aid that Connecticut could send; the questions of 
ordnance, provisions, etc. 

The committee left Providence on their homeward journey 
about noon on Monday, May 5, reaching Boston the day fol- 
lowing in time for Ward to take his place in the Council. 

Consideration of his report resulted in the plan being 
dropped for a time, the General Court deciding that it was 
impracticable with the forces available because of the dom- 
ination of both bay and river by the English fleet. 

The protraction of the struggle and the precarious condi- 
tion of the American cause emboldened the tories and they 
became "Exceeding busy." Reports of internal sedition mul- 
tiplied and the General Court on May 3 appointed a new 
"Committee of Secresy." 

Only two weeks later Heath advised the Council that he 
had received information that May 20 was to be made "the 
hottest Day that ever America saw, for on that Day the 
Tories would Rise and show themselves," 

He added that he believed "from several other concuring 
circumstances uncommon vigllence and Exertion are neces- 
sary. Distrust is the Mother of security. It is said that a 
Rendezvous of the Parlcides is to be somewhere In the County 
of Worcester. Are there not in that County a considerable 
number of Highland Soldiers? Should there be an Insurrec- 
tion, can there be any doubt, that they will not instantly join? 
and as to their getting of Armes they can easily effect it." ^ 

May 20 passed innocuously, but dangerous disorder still 
threatened. The preparations to meet the projected upris- 
ing had caused its fomenters to delay the attempt, but did not 

* Original letter, Massachusetts Archives, CXCVII, 56. 



7777] THE STRAIN OF THE LONG WAR 243 

cure their mutinous spirit. They continued "visiting & jour- 
neying from place to place . . . ploting measures to oppose 
public exertions, and assist the enimy should a favorable op- 
portunity present."^ 

Ward's home county being especially affected, he left 
Boston to return to Shrewsbury for the secret committee — 
which was equipped with a wide range of power and held 
authority to direct "Warrants to any Persons Inhabitants 
of this State for the Purpose of arresting and convening any 
Persons who are liable by Law to be arrested for transgress- 
ing . . . the Act against Treason and Offences less than 
Treason and any Acts for punishing Persons inimical to the 
American States." 

Ward also took advantage of his return to Worcester 
County to preside at the session of the Court of Common 
Pleas which opened June 10- — one of the only three occasions 
on which his other duties permitted him to attend the court 
during the first six years of the war. 

He was back in the capital on June 20, to find the ominous 
rumors of tory plots supplemented by reports that the British 
fleet at Newport was about to set out for Boston. 

Soon after, overshadowing all, came Burgoyne's descent 
from Canada with his lavishly equipped army of redcoats, 
Hessians, Canadians, and Indians. Ticonderoga and its 
valuable stores fell to him on July 6. 

Following the news from Ticonderoga came an urgent 
call (July 21) from Governor Cooke of Rhode Island stat- 
ing that "a fleet of about 40 square rigged vessells were . . . 
coming through the Sound standing Eastward, so that it is 
past doubt that they are bound into Newport. We request 
that you immediately send all the assistance in your power. 
. . . We imagine that the Enemy intend to possess them- 
selves of this town [Providence] & then penetrate the Coun- 
try so far as your Capital. We are directing all our Militia 

* Levi Lincoln to Ward. — JVorcester, Original Papers, I, lo2, American Antiquarian 
Society. 



244 ARTEMAS WARD l^^e^g 

& alarm men to march into this place & to such other places 
as we expect it probable they mean to land."^ 

The dispatch reached Boston about ten o'clock of the same 
night. Ward and other members of the Council "immedi- 
ately met and sat until after two in the morning."^ 

No time could be spared to test the accuracy of Cooke's 
surmise. Instant action was needed to forestall the danger 
threatened, and Ward hurried expresses out into the night 
with orders for the draft of a large body of militia to march 
immediately to Providence: the men to be "well equipped 
with arms and ammunition" and furnished with six days' pro- 
visions, and the selectmen of their towns to arrange for addi- 
tional supplies to follow them. 

Early on the following morning Ward hurried an express 
to Meshech Weare of New Hampshire, sending him a copy 
of Governor Cooke's letter, telling him of the forces that 
Massachusetts was collecting, and warning him to be on the 
lookout. 

Two-thirds of the New Hampshire regiments had been 
weakened a few days earlier by detachments for the famous 
little army with which Stark was planning to check and harass 
Burgoyne, but the New Hampshire Committee of Safety im- 
mediately issued orders to draft one-half of the remaining 
full regiments. 

In these urgent preparations James Warren made a sorry 
spectacle of himself. He was appointed to the command of 
the Massachusetts militia being raised, and instructed to join 
the continental forces in Rhode Island under General Spen- 
cer. He refused to go on the plea that he felt it beneath his 
dignity as a major-general of the Massachusetts militia 
(though he had never been, and never was, In any action) 
to serve under Major-General Spencer of the continental 
army, because his commission (June 19, 1776) as militia 
major-general antedated Spencer's commission (August 9, 

^ Neiv Hampshire State, Promndal, and Toivn Papers, VIII, 645. 

* Preble's Diary, Monday, July 21, 1777. — First Three Generations of Prehles, 81. 



777/] THE STRAIN OF THE LONG WAR 245 

i'^"]6) as continental major-general (by less than two 
months), though Spencer had been in active command from 
the early days of the siege of Boston, and continental brig- 
adier-general (of the first appointments) until his promo- 
tion to major-general. 

James Warren's contention — made in a time of stress and 
emergency — appears the more unnecessary when it is noted 
that under similar conditions a few months later the com- 
mand was not considered an Indignity by John Hancock, 
first major-general of the militia and for years president 
of the Continental Congress — and, furthermore, a man who 
was never accused of self-depreciation! 

A few days later (August 7) Warren submitted his resigna- 
tion — and that was the end of his brief career in a military 
capacity. 

Close upon the heels of Governor Cooke's cry of alarm, 
came later dispatches which threw doubt on Providence as 
the enemy's objective, and marching orders were counter- 
manded, the militia being instead instructed to hold "them- 
selves in Constant readiness to march on the shortest notice." 

Then followed several days of anxious watching. The 
manoeuvres of the English fleet apparently threatened Massa- 
chusetts.^ "We have never, since the evacuation of Boston, 
been under apprehensions of an invasion equal to what we 
suffered last week," wrote Abigail Adams. "All Boston was 
in confusion, packing up and carting out of town household 
furniture, military stores, goods, etc. Not less than a thous- 
and teams were employed on Friday and Saturday; and, to 
their shame be It told, not a small trunk would they carry 
under eight dollars, and many of them, I am told, asked a 
hundred dollars a load; for carting a hogshead of molasses 
eight miles, thirty dollars."*^ 

° "No doubt an attack on this State is intended." — Massachusetts Council to Governor 
Trumbull of Connecticut, August i, 1777, Massachusetts Archives, CXCVII, 379. 
'August 5, 1777, Familiar Letters of John Adams and his TFife, 287. 



246 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 4g 

But again the alarm died out and Massachusetts' attention 
returned to Burgoyne's invasion from the north. 

There was much dissatisfaction with the management 
of the army opposing Burgoyne. Ward shared New Eng- 
land's dislike of General Schuyler- — though he did not carry 
it to the same extent as many of his contemporaries, among 
whom were many who thought Schuyler traitorous and 
openly objected to serving with him. The loss of Ticon- 
deroga had intensified such suspicions. 

Schuyler accused Massachusetts as one of the states whose 
slowness in sending reinforcements he declared to be the 
cause of his retirement before the enemy. 

Ward, for the Council, retorted, August 1 1 : "You are 
pleased to say that your little Army is obliged to retire be- 
fore the Enemy neglected and unsupported by those whose 
Duty as well as Interest it is to prevent the Enemy from tak- 
ing possession of this State. At present we can't see how it 
is in the power of this State to send a reinforcement In Season 
sufficient to Stop the Enemy before you reach Albany, Pro- 
vided you Continue your rapid Retreat & dispute no one 
Inch of Ground."'^ 

In common with other New England leaders. Ward made 
the mistake of preferring Gates to Schuyler, and he welcomed 
the order transferring the northern command to Gates. 
He declared that it gave "general satisfaction." 

The letter which records this sentiment, comments on 
Stark's decisive victory near Bennington (August i6) which 
destroyed two detachments of Burgoyne's hitherto victorious 
army — won, so it happened, because Stark had counter- 
manded Schuyler's orders to march from Manchester on 
August 7, bidding Lincoln tell Schuyler "that he considered 
himself adequate to the command of his own men."^ 

It speaks also of Ward's third son, "Tommy" (Thomas 
Walter Ward, later in life to be known to every one in 

''Massachusetts Archives, CXCVIII, 25. 

* Foster and Streeter, Stark's Independent Command at Bennington, 47. 



7777] THE STRAIN OF THE LONG WAR 247 

Worcester County as "the sheriff"), at Bennuigton as a vol- 
unteer, and of his second son. Captain Nahum Ward,'' then 
at Fort Stanwix. 

On September 17 the General Court decided in favor of 
the "Secret Expedition" by Massachusetts, Connecticut, and 
Rhode Island contingents against the English at Newport 
which had been set aside in the spring after Ward's com- 
mittee report on the project. 

The expedition, made in the following month, proved abor- 
tive and Ward journeyed again to Providence to sit as 
president of a court of inquiry composed of committees ap- 
pointed by the three participating states. 

The court's report exonerated General Spencer. It ex- 
pressed the opinion that there had been a "fair opportunity" 
to make a descent on Rhode Island on the night of October 
16 and that it was "highly probable that the attack would 
have been crowned with success" but that the opportunity 
had been lost by General Palmer's failure to embody his 
brigade and to seasonably distribute the boats needed by both 
his and the other brigades. As no other equally good occa- 
sion afterwards presented itself — because of bad weather, 
the expiration of enlistment periods, and new dispositions of 
the enemy's forces — the report justified the abandonment of 
the enterprise as "judicious and well founded." 

The failure of the expedition had comparatively little 
effect on the public mind of Massachusetts, for, during the 
entire period of its short campaign, the attention of the state 
had been centered upon the absorbing development of Bur- 
goyne's campaign. 

The Council had toward the end of September distributed 
a House resolution, dated September 22, calling for militia 
to hurry to the reinforcement of General Gates. The army 
under Burgoyne, it said, "have far advanced from Water 
Carriage and by that means have rendered their retreat more 

* Captain in Colonel James Wesson's regiment, Continental Army. He died in Boston 
of smallpox, March 6, 1778 (not March 7, as in family records). 



248 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 49-50 

Difficult," — and if the army under Gates be "speedily and 
strongly reenforced, there is a great Prospect under the smiles 
of Divine Providence, of wholly destroying them." 

The highest expectations were realized. Before the end 
of October came the news of Burgoyne's surrender. All New 
England rejoiced. It seemed a proper confirmation of its 
preference for Gates l^*^ 

The success was a most substantial one. It meant not only 
the elimination of a formidable English army and the flatten- 
ing out, for a time, of the tory conspiracies in western Massa- 
chusetts and the New Hampshire Grants — it was also speedily 
to show an equally important result in France's openly allying 
herself with America. 

The following year (1778) was, nevertheless, one of many 
difficulties for Ward and the other members of the Council. 
No fear was felt of any new invasion from the north, but the 
continued English occupation of Newport and the nearby 
presence of a powerful enemy fleet compelled the state to be 
constantly in readiness for an attack either overland or from 
1 the sea — or both together. It was necessary to keep a sub- 
stantial militia force constantly in service, in addition to 
raising a large body of men for the continental army and 
furnishing Massachusetts' quota for another attack on New- 
port — this year a continental undertaking with Major-Gen- 
eral Sullivan in chief command. 

The people of Rhode Island were increasingly nervous at 
the continued presence of an English army on their soil, and 
they were inclined to cast blame in every direction. On August 
17 Governor William Greene complained that Massachu- 
setts had not sent all the troops expected as her share of the 
Newport expedition. This drew from Ward a rather sharp 

^"Typical is a gathering, October 22, 1777, of the people of Springfield, Mass., and sev- 
eral neighboring towns to celebrate "the great and important success of the American 
Arms under the brave and immortal General Gates, whose name will ever with Grati- 
tude be mentioned by every Tongue inspired with the Love of Virtue, to latest Posterity." 
A toast was drunk to "the generous British Gates, who bravely step'd forth in the 
Cause of Virtue and America, and captivated the Northern British Army." — Continental 
Journal and Weekly Advertiser, November 13, 1777. 



1777-78^ THE STRAIN OF THE LONG WAR 249 

retort. He declared that it was "with no small degree of 
surprise" that the Council read the charge that Massachusetts 
had disappointed General Sullivan. It would have been 
"more satisfactory" had Greene "made out" his assertion. 

"This State," he continued, "has ever been ready, and ever 
will be, to do everything in its power. Consistent with reason, 
for the benefit of the United States, or any Sister State, but 
for any State to Expect that this State must bare the whole 
burden or at least the greatest part of it, & when they have 
Exerted Every Nerve to be thus Stigmatized with neglect of 
Duty is hard, & in our opinion is what doth not become any 
State to Charge us with. 

"The Council previous to the receipt of your letter had 
given orders for the making up all deficiencies that had arisen 
by reason of any men having left the Army on account of their 
time for which they were drafted having Expired." ^^ 

Prospects seemed very bright for this new Rhode Island 
campaign. Sullivan's army of Continentals and militiamen 
was to be strengthened by 4000 French troops, and the 
French fleet was to bombard the enemy from the sea. 

Lafayette and Nathanael Greene had joined Sullivan, and 
they commanded the two wings of the attacking divisions. 
The second line was commanded by Hancock, as Massachu- 
setts major-general. 

But a heavy gale damaged the French fleet and resulted 
In its withdrawal to Boston to refit. The French troops went 
with their fleet. This doomed the expedition. Its final phase 
was crowned by the "Battle of Rhode Island," In which Con- 
tinentals, militiamen, and American negroes contended sav- 
agely with English regulars and Hessians, but the approach 
of English reinforcements compelled the abandonment of the 
effort. The enemy thenceforth remained undisturbed in 
Newport until their voluntary evacuation In October of the 
following year. 

The coming of the French fleet into Boston Harbor to re- 

^^ Massachusetts Archives, CXCVIII, 64. 



250 ARTEMAS WARD l^^e 51 

pair the ships damaged by the storm which had driven it 
from Newport, led the Council to urge upon the Continental 
Congress the importance of the further fortification of the 
harbor. 

Its letter (December 15), signed by Jeremiah Powell but 
prepared by Ward, expressed the conviction that it was in- 
dispensably necessary "for the Honorable Congress to take 
some effectual measures to have some Port within the 
United States Fortified and Secured, in such manner, as to 
make it a Safe Port, for any squadron this our Allie may see 
fit to send to our Protection or Assistance, to repair to, in case 
of Disaster or otherwise." It further declared that "It does 
not appear to the Council that any Port within these States 
has as yet been sufficiently fortifyed or Secured to answer 
the purpose beforementloned. And The Council are humbly 
of Opinion that there is not upon the Continent any Port 
Preferable by nature or Equal to the Port of Boston to answer 
this End. But this was by the Count D'Estaing found un- 
safe without throwing up Temporary works on the Main 
and on several Islands, and taking Cannon from his Ships 
& Planting them within those works. Which cannon he Car- 
ried off with him when he took his departure from hence as 
he had a Right so to do. If our Allies when they come to the 
Assistance of these States, have to fortify our Harbours to 
Secure themselves, will it not be discouraging to them, and 
Highly derogatory to the United American States P"^^ 

It was on April 10 of this year that the "South Parish of 
Worcester" (a precinct formed five years earlier of land set 
off from Worcester, Sutton, Leicester, and Oxford) was in- 
corporated as a separate township to be known as "Ward" — 
this name having been bestowed upon it by Its inhabitants out 
of their affectionate admiration for General Ward.^^ 

" Massachusetts Archives, CC, 260. 

*' As "Ward" the town flourished for more than half a century, but unfortunately 
the town of "Ware" had preceded it both in establishment and incorporation. The 
conseciuent confusion in addresses caused much trouble, and the title of "Auburn" was 
substituted for "Ward" on February 17, 1837. 



177^-79^ THE STRAIN OF THE LONG WAR 251 

On April 29 and 30 of the following year (1779) Ward 
acted as chairman of the General Court conferences on two 
bills — passed on the days following — for the confiscation of 
the estates of absentees. 

A few weeks later, about June 20, word came from the 
north that an English squadron from Halifax had seized the 
Majorbagaduce peninsula (now "Castine"), Maine, which 
commands the mouth of the Penobscot River and dominates 
Penobscot Bay. The move aroused instant apprehension. 
It was not only a direct assault upon Massachusetts territory 
(for Maine was then politically a part of Massachusetts); 
it also greatly increased the potential menace of the English 
fleet. With Penobscot to the north and Newport to the 
south both occupied by the English, Boston and the entire 
coast line of Massachusetts proper lay within two enemy 
naval bases less than three hundred miles apart. 

Massachusetts determined on immediate action in the hope 
of dislodging the enemy before he could strengthen his pos- 
session. So rapidly were plans conceived and carried out that, 
only twenty-odd days after the first reports of the English 
landing, a fleet of nineteen armed vessels and twenty-four 
transports had been organized, equipped, and provisioned, 
and was ready to sail. It was the largest American fleet that 
had ever been assembled. 

Less satisfactory proved the size of the landing force, for 
the militia detachment totaled less than two-thirds of the 
1500 men called for by the General Court order. 

The fleet was under the command of Richard Saltonstall; 
the land force under Brigadier-General Solomon Lovell. 
Second under Lovell was Peleg Wadsworth, one of Ward's 
aides at the siege of Boston. Paul Revere (lieutenant- 
colonel since November, 1776) had charge of the artillery. 

The expedition came, however, to a sorry fate. 

It reached Penobscot on Sunday, July 25, and its first days 
were illuminated by a brilliant episode: the scaling of the 
steep southerly side of the peninsula in the face of withering 



252 ARTEMAS WARD [^^e 51 

musketry fire. The party lost a fourth of its men but won 
its objective and threw up a breastwork within point-blank 
shot of the enemy's main fortification. 

An excellent start — and the American fleet looked menac- 
ingly formidable to the Englishmen entrusted with the de- 
fense of the position. But possible success was thrown away 
by lack of concerted initiative, by want of decision, and by 
continuous disagreements between the fleet and land com- 
manders. A fortnight of varied dissensions and minor activi- 
ties — then the end came quickly. On August 13 a reinforcing 
English squadron was sighted, turning the odds heavily 
against the Americans, and an immediate retreat was ordered. 

The story of the siege and its disastrous termination has 
often been told — to recount it here would serve no purpose. 
The result was the loss of the entire American fleet (save only 
one vessel, the Pallas, which had previously been dispatched 
on a special detail) and the ignominious dispersal of the 
American force. 

The utter collapse of the expedition raised a storm 
throughout the state, and the General Court on September 9 
appointed a committee of investigation. 

Ward served as president of the committee. 

Its report (October 7) declared that "want of proper 
spirit and energy" on the part of Commodore Saltonstall was 
"the principal reason of the failure." It praised and exon- 
erated General Lovell. 

The report was accepted by the General Court ^^ and by it 
forwarded to the Continental Congress. 

Later sessions of the committee also found Lieutenant- 
Colonel Revere censurable for insuborciination.^^ 

The failure of the project was a grievous disappointment 
to General Ward. On September 8 he wrote to Joseph 
Ward: 

"Was in hopes when I wrote you last, should have been 

^* Massachusetts General Court Records, October S, 1779, XL, 65-67. 
^'^Massachusetts Archives, CXLV, 375. 



7779] THE STRAIN OF THE LONG WAR 253 

able the next time I wrote, to do it in the congratulatory stile, 
on account of our expedition to Penobscot. But alass, I am 
totally deprived of that pleasure and am under the disagree- 
able necessity of acquainting you that the siege was raised, 
and the whole fleet destroyed or taken, excepting the Pallas. 

"... I have been told that it has been said by some 
one in the army, that we wanted advice in planning the ex- 
pedition, and insinuating thereby that that was the reason 
why the enterprise failed. They had better spare their re- 
flections, and re-examine their own conduct in all its parts. 
I think it was well done." ^^'' 

Ward felt strongly the danger in leaving Penobscot in the 
possession of the enemy, but it was not possible to make a 
second attempt to recover it. English successes in the south 
followed so quickly that the general needs of the colonies 
forbade the diversion northward of any considerable part of 
the Massachusetts forces. 

The following November (the eighteenth), the General 
Court elected Ward a delegate to the Continental Congress 
for the year 1780. Hancock, Samuel Adams, and Elbridge 
Gerry were among the others who completed the delegation 
of seven. 

As the state's representatives they were "fully impowered, 
with the Delegates . . . from the other American States, 
to concert, direct and order such further measures as shall 
appear to them best calculated for the establishment of 
the Rights, Liberty and Independence of the United States 
of America upon a basis permanent and secure against the 
power and art of the British Nation; for prosecuting the 
present War, concluding peace, contracting alliances, estab- 
lishing commerce, and guarding against any future encroach- 
ments and machinations of their enemies." 

The General Court did not expect the continuous attend- 
ance in Philadelphia of all of its seven delegates. It sug- 

^'' Printed in Scrlhncr's Monthly, XI, 716. The original letter is (1921) in the pos- 
session of Joseph F. Ward, Evanston, 111. 



254 ARTEMAS WARD [^^e 32 

gested their serving "in rotation," though enjoining that 
"four at least . . . attend constantly upon the business of 
their delegation," Three instead of four was, however, the 
general Massachusetts representation during the years 1780 
and 1781. 

The prestige of members of the Continental Congress was 
so high and their opinions carried such weight that in Massa- 
chusetts politics they constituted a kind of upper chamber. 

On May 16, 1780, Ward left Boston for Shrewsbury in 
order both to prepare for his journey to Philadelphia to at- 
tend the Congress, and to take part in his township's con- 
^^sideration of the proposed new state constitution drawn up 
and submitted by the Constitutional Convention. ^^ 

"Shrewsbury held four meetings to discuss the proposed constitution: May i, May 25, 
May 29, and June i. 

At the first meeting the "form of Government was read and conversed upon," but 
no formal action was taken. The other three meetings discussed and voted upon both 
the "Hill of Rights" and the "Frame of Government," article by article, and suggested 
numerous changes. 

At the second meeting, twenty-eight of the thirty articles of tlie Bill of Rights were 
approved by a nearly unanimous vote (92 of a possible 96). The exceptions were 
Articles III and XXIX. Article III established the principle of compulsory support of 
a religious establishment; Article XXIX made the terms of the judges of the Supreme 
Judicial Court for "as long as they behave themselves well." Neither of these received 
in Shrewsbury the two-thirds vote required to express approval. 

At the third meeting, a proposed amendment to Article III, which received 44 votes 
in favor and only 15 against, left the legislature power to authorize towns and par- 
ishes "to make suitable provision . . . for the institution of the public worship of God," 
but struck out its authority to require them to do so. It also eliminated the paragraph 
authorizing the legislature to "enjoin" attendance upon church services, and declared 
that no one should be held by the action of local authorities or bodies for the support of 
"any sect or persuasion" if he "congregate elsewhere." (A number of other towns 
made similar objections to Article III, but it nevertheless became a part of the consti- 
tution. It stood for a little more than half a century, and was then annulled by the 
Tenth Article of Amendment.) 

The fourth meeting voted 39 to 11 in favor of amending Article XXIX so that 
judges should be chosen for a term of five years only. It was feared that otherwise they 
might become too independent of the people and that the door might be opened to 
favoritism. 

The Frame of Government was much less generally acceptable. Few of its provisions 
attained a two-thirds support and several of them failed to receive even a majority. 
Among the latter was Article II of Chapter I, Section I, which gave the governor veto 
power over the legislature. 

A number of suggested amendments to the Frame of Government were introduced and 
some of them were highly approved. That applying to Article IX, Section I, Chapter 
II, gave the appointment of all judicial officers to the legislature, instead of to the 
governor and Council ; to Article X, Section I, Chapter II, gave to the legislature the 
duty of nominating continental officers, instead of entrusting their appointment entirely 
to the governor and Council ; to Article XIII, Section I , Chapter II, provided for annual 



lySo] THE STRAIN OF THE LONG WAR 255 

He set out from Shrewsbury on June 2, accompanied by 
Daniel Newton ^^ as his personal attendant — both on horse- 
back. 

Eleven days were consumed on the road, but this included 
a stay of one and a half days in Suffield, Conn., half a day at 
Goshen, N. Y., and a half day in Bethlehem, N. J. They 
rode into Connecticut south of Springfield (Mass.), entered 
New York westerly of New Fairfield (Conn.), crossed the 
Hudson from Fishkill Creek to New Windsor, entered New 
Jersey westerly of the Wawayanda Mountains, and came 
into Pennsylvania during the forenoon of June 12, ferrying 
over the Delaware River at a point near the bridge now 
uniting Stockton, N. J., and Center Bridge, Pa. The fol- 
lowing morning they arrived in Philadelphia.^^ 

The next day (June 14) Ward took his place in the 
Congress sitting in Independence Hall. 

It was not a large gathering which greeted him as a new 
member arrived to help it struggle with a multitude of 
problems. There were only twenty-seven delegates present 

grants to the governor and higher justices instead of permanent salaries established by 
law ; to Article I, Chapter III, required, instead of permitting, the governor and Council 
to remove judicial officers upon the address of both houses of the legislature; to the 
third paragraph of Article II, Chapter VI, added "settled ministers" and seamen to 
those excluded from holding a seat in either the Senate or the House of Representatives, 
and prohibited any individual from holding more than one civil or military commission 
at the same time; to Article X, Chapter VI, required the calling within five years 
(instead of in 1795) of a convention to consider the revision of the constitution. 

The original report of the Shrewsbury discussion and vote is in the Massachusetts 
Archives, CCLXXVII, 108. 

In Alassachusetts Historical Society Proceedings, L, 353, is an interesting paper by 
S. E. Morison on "the Struggle over the Adoption of the Constitution of Massachusetts." 
Professor Morison raises the question whether the constitution was ever legally ratified, 
remarking that "the Convention's method of tabulating the popular vote raises the sus- 
picion that the [necessary] two-thirds majority was manufactured." 

*^ Daniel Newton "kept a diary [whereabouts now unknown] in which he recorded 
the texts of all the sermons he heard, some delivered by the most eminent preachers of 
that day: related the substance of conversations he had on the subject of religion with 
Major-General Ward, whose servant he was, and with Samuel Adams, then a member of 
Congress." — IQ0/—IQ02 Report of the Daughters of the American Revolution, 297. 

'^ Ward took rooms in the house of "Mary Dalley." He was shortly joined there by 
Samuel Adams, who reached the capital before the end of the month. 

On October 13 they moved to the house of "Mrs. Miller," both of them remaining 
with her until their departure from Philadelphia in the following spring. "She is a well 
bred woman," wrote Samuel Adams to his wife, November 24, 1780, "and my situation 
is agreeable." — Cushing, Writings of Samuel Adams, IV, 227. 



256 ARTEMAS WARD l^^e ^2-53 

(including Ward), and during the entire twelve months thus 
commenced, the number never exceeded thirty-one — the at- 
tendance being indeed generally under twenty-five. 

It was a precarious period and was destined to grow worse 
during the year. August was to see Gates routed at Camden. 
In September came Benedict Arnold's treason. 

The energies of Congress were especially directed to efforts 
to obtain European recognition of the United States, to keep 
the army supplied, and to breathe health into the terribly 
demoralized public finances. Continental paper money had 
become almost worthless. 

The reciprocal esteem of Ward and Samuel Adams con- 
tinued as complete during their service in the continental 
legislature as it had been in the earlier and equally critical 
period which haci preceded Lexington. There were three 
Massachusetts delegates present during Ward's attendance : 
Ward himself, Adams, and Lovell. In voting, Lovell some- 
times divided against Ward, or Adams, or both; but Ward 
and Adams always voted alike — it was always "no" or "ay" 
from both. 

Ward's first committee appointment was, June 19, on a 
plan for conducting the quartermaster's department. Four 
other members were named with him, one of them being 
General Philip Schuyler — the same Schuyler with whom he 
had exchanged sharp repartee during the Burgoyne campaign. 

Four days later he was added to the Board of War. 

He figured also, concurrently, on a succession of com- 
mittees. 

Among the earliest was one (June 27) to consider the re- 
port of the Treasury Board which declared that the Treasury 
was "totally exhausted" and that the Board "knew not which 
way to turn themselves to afford any relief to the daily press- 
ing demands made on them from many quarters." 

The committee's report, delivered June 29, resulted in ex- 
presses being dispatched with treasury warrants drawn on 
the treasurers of New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode 



lySo] THE STRAIN OF THE LONG WAR 257 

Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, 
Delaware, and Maryland, to the total of their unpaid assess- 
ments. With the warrants went letters to the state executives 
telling of the "urgent necessity" for funds to maintain and 
supply the army — if they were not furnished, it would "be im- 
possible for the operations to proceed." 

In a division, August 2, Ward voted "ay" for the removal 
of earlier resolutions which restricted Washington to opera- 
tions within the United States. 

On September 22 Massachusetts reelected Ward to the 
Continental Congress for 1781 — the General Court giving 
him the highest vote accorded to any delegate, only one other 
member equaling it. Among those named with him were 
again Samuel Adams and Gerry — but both of them with 
lower votes. 

Ward during this fall was again severely attacked by his 
persistent malady. On December 19 Lovell wrote to Dr. 
Samuel Holten (another Massachusetts delegate, then in 
Boston) : "Genl Ward is quite unwell, he has attended Con- 
gress & the Bd of War while he ought to have been in his 
Bed Room." 20 

Meantime, in Massachusetts had been held the first elec- 
tions of executives under the new state constitution. 

Ward's choice for governor (as also that of many other 
Massachusetts leaders) had been James Bowdoin, but Han- 
cock's general popularity carried the day. 

Ward's opinion of Hancock had suffered seriously from 
the latter's long and continuing delay In accounting for the 
funds of Harvard College, entrusted to him as treasurer from 
July, 1773, to July, 1777.^^ 

^'' Essex Institute Historical Collections, XIII, 222. 

^^ On October 20, 1778, after years of patient requests, waiting, and postponements, 
the Overseers of Harvard College had named Ward (an Overseer by virtue of his mem- 
bership in the Council) on a new special committee to try to bring Hancock to a reckon- 
ing. Hancock again promised to submit his accounts, but again broke his word, and on 
December 9 Ward wrote to him saying that, in view of his promises, his failure was 
inexplicable. "I am," he continued, "constrained in behalf of the Committee to beg and 
beseech you as you regard your own Honor, and the interest of the College to cause 



258 ARTEMAS WARD [^^^55 

He also felt that Hancock devoted too much time to social 
functions and too little to affairs of state. On March 13, 
178 1, he wrote to Samuel Osgood :^^ "Measures ought to be 
taken by the States to inform Congress of everything they 
have done in consequence of their requisitions for men & 
money. Since Novr last the Governor gives no more in- 
formation than if he was at the East Indies, notwithstanding 
it is his duty. If he don't know his duty I wish his Council 
would advise him ; if they don't know it to be his duty, do let 
some body be appointed to teach them."^^ 

The year 178 1 has high historic importance, for it was 
marked by earnest efforts to achieve the stronger central 
authority which was increasingly recognized as the country's 
greatest need. Thus we find the endeavor to obtain for 
Congress the right to levy import duties to meet the pressing 
necessity for a more certain national revenue; the unfolding 
of plans for executive departments and a federal judiciary; 
and the establishment of a national bank. 

The first day of March witnessed the final signatures 
to the Articles of Confederation. The United States had thus 
a fully authorized written constitution, but it was a document 
lacking the enforcement provisions essential to a competent 
national government, and on March 6 a committee was ap- 
pointed "to prepare a plan to Invest the United States in 
Congress assembled with full and explicit powers for effectu- 
ally carrying Into execution in the several states all acts or 

your accounts aforesaid to be prepared for examination . . . without any further delay." 
But Hancock continued to delay and on May 20, 1779, Ward and the other two mem- 
bers of the committee asked "to be excused from any further concern" in tlie matter 
when the other overseers demonstrated that they lacked the courage to put Hancock's 
bond in suit to protect the college and enforce the payment of the much needed money 
due it {MS. Records of Overseers, HI, 159). Hancock reached a "settlement" of his 
accounts in February, 1785, but the first payment on the balance due the college was not 
made until 1795 — two years after his death (Quincy, History of Harvard University, 
II, 182-209). 

"One of Ward's aides-de-camp during the siege of Boston (Chapter V, page 90) — 
at the date of this letter, a newly elected delegate to the Continental Congress ; later, 
Commissioner of the Treasury and Postmaster-General. 

'^ IMS. draft in possession (1921) of Ward Dix Kerlin, Camden, N. J. 



lySi] THE STRAIN OF THE LONG WAR 259 

resolutions passed agreeably to the Articles of Confedera- 
tion." 

The committee recommended application to the states for 
an article granting Congress authority "to employ the force 
of the United States, as well by sea as by land," to compel 
any neglectful or refractory "State or States to fulfill their 
federal engagements." 

The report was on May 2 referred to a "Grand Commit- 
tee" of thirteen members — one from each state. Ward 
represented Massachusetts. The committee proved ineffec- 
tive because of the departure soon after of Ward and several 
other members, and its business was later turned over to a 
new committee. 

The completed Confederacy seemed headed for swift bank- 
ruptcy, but French money saved the day. On May 28 
Congress heard the welcome news that King Louis had "re- 
solved to grant the United States a subsidy of six million 
livres tournois and to enable Dr. [Benjamin] Franklin to 
borrow four million more." So the ship of state steadied 
itself and continued its long and difficult voyage over the 
uncharted political seas. 

Despite the heavy laboring and threatening storms, the 
port of success was steadily nearing. England was weary of 
the protracted expensive struggle, which had embroiled her 
with all of continental Europe. Spain and Holland had fol- 
lowed France Into the war with her, and Russia's League of 
Armed Neutrality supported the hands of all her enemies. 
English statesmen and English merchants alike longed for 
the termination of the conflict, and thus It came about that 
Ward's last votes were cast on June 14 for the election of 
Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and Henry Laurens 
(John Jay had been elected on June 13) to "be joined to 
the honorable John Adams in negotiating a treaty of peace 
with Great Britain." 

On the preceding day Ward had received leave of absence 
and he set out on his homeward trip on the following Mon- 



26o ARTEMAS WARD l^^e S3-54 

day (June i8). He had been a full year in Philadelphia 
and he could leave with a clear conscience, for two other 
Massachusetts delegates had reached the capital to take his 
place and that of Samuel Adams (who had returned to 
Boston a few weeks earlier). 

On June 22, while he was on his way back, Massachusetts 
reelected him to Congress for the year 1782 — the General 
Court giving him 104 out of 131 votes — but his "state of 
health" and the circumstances of his family^^ caused him to 
decline this third term. 

Samuel Adams and Gerry were also reelected, but both 
again by considerably fewer votes. 

The General Court was now, under the new constitution, 
composed of representatives and senators, instead of repre- 
sentatives and councilors. The Council's duties had become 
exclusively executive, being confined to advising and assisting 
the governor. Its old share in lawmaking had passed to the 
Senate. 

Ward spent the months of July and August in Shrewsbury, 
giving needed attention to his private affairs but devoting 
most of the time to rest and recuperation. 

On September 4 he presided in the Worcester County 
Court of Common Pleas for the first time under the new con- 
stitution. ^^ The Massachusetts Spy of September 6 notes 
that "He gave a charge to the jury, which It is hoped, will 
have a tendency to reform the morals of the people." 

Adjuration was needed, for western Massachusetts was 
beginning to ferment with the unrest that culminated in 
Shays' Rebellion. The strain of the long war was telling 
on the poorer, western counties, who plentifully supplied men 
for its armies but profited little by its commercial inflation. 

In this month there occurred also an Interesting tribute to 
the regard in which Ward was held by the Massachusetts 

^* Ward, December 20, 1781, to Samuel Adams. — Original letter, Alnssaihttsctts Ar- 
chives, CCIV, 9. 

^ He had been confirmed as justice of the Court of Common Pleas of Worcester 
County on Marcli i (1781). 



1781-82'] THE STRAIN OF THE LONG WAR 261 

House of Representatives— the House passing, September 
20, a special vote that, though not a member, "a chair be 
assigned for the Hon. Genl. Ward to set in, to hear the De- 
bates of the House when he sees fit." 

The next month brought the glad news of the surrender 
of Cornwallis and his army to American-French forces un- 
der Washington's personal direction. 

From a military standpoint the war had ended, with the 
new republic victorious, but two more years were to drag 
before the goal was fully won. 

On May 29 (1782) Ward was again in Boston as a mem- 
ber of the Massachusetts House. 

On the following day the General Court elected him Sena- 
tor by a vote of 115 out of 126, but he declined to serve, 
preferring to retain instead his old-time familiar place in the 
House. 

June 25, he received from Governor Hancock a commis- 
sion as "Judge of Probate of Wills, etc.. In the County of 
Worcester," but he refused this also, "as I am honored with a 
seat in the House of Representatives, & know it to be the wish 
of my Constituents to have me continue there through the 
year; and as holding both is incompatible by the Constitu- 
tion." ^« 

His return to the House was very popular among the Rep- 
resentatives. There were few days of the legislative year 
which did not place him on some committee. 

Prominent among the appointments was that of June 4, 
on the committee of finance "To consider all money matters 
that concern this Commonwealth" and whatever "reform 
and alteration" seemed necessary in the conduct of the state 
treasury. 

Another, October 22, was on the condition of the inhabi- 
tants of Nantucket Island; the fishermen there being much 
distraught by war's interference with their livelihood — and, 

^^ June 26, 1782, to Hancock. — Original letter, Massachusetts Archwes, CCVI, i6i. 



262 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 54 

by their countrymen elsewhere, being not a little suspected of 
aiding the enemy. -^ The committee reported (October 29) 
that the people of Nantucket Island were justified In their 
complaints and that they were entitled to relief, but It advised 
referring their memorial to the Continental Congress, "as no 
adequate relief can be given them but by the United States." 
Both House and Senate concurred, and a copy of the me- 
morial was sent to the Massachusetts delegates In the Conti- 
nental Congress with the admonition that they "use their 
utmost endeavors to Impress the minds of Congress with just 
Ideas of the high Worth and Importance of the Fisheries to 
the United States In general and this State in particular." 

A third committee appointment was, November 12, to re- 
pair to Berkshire County and "fix the places for holding the 
courts." 

Yet others were: February 18, 1783, by the joint vote of 
the House and Senate, as one of three commissioners "to 
meet such as might be appointed on the part of [the] several 
states to treat upon the subject matter of Impost and Excise" ; 
and, February 8, 1783, to bring In a bill relative to "Negros 
and Molattos," to be based on the principle that there never 
had been legal slaves in Massachusetts, and to provide both 
for indemnifying masters who had held slaves in fact and 
for any assistance to negroes and mulattos that the com- 
missioners might find expedient. 

The trouble In the western counties had by the early sum- 
mer of 1782 grown to serious proportions. In April a 
Hampshire County mob led by Samuel Ely, an irregular 
preacher, had disturbed the sitting of the courts In Northamp- 
ton. Ely was arrested, and imprisoned in Springfield, but his 

-'' New Eufihind Historical and Genealogical Register, XXIX, 141-145. At an 
earlier date (tlie winter of 1779-1780) Ward had served as chairman of a committee to 
hivestigate charges of treason brought against several of Nantucket's prominent inhabi- 
tants. The charges came to nothing, the complainant retracting his accusations. — Massa- 
chusetts Archi-ves, CXXXVII, 279—292. See also "Nantucket in the Revolution," New 
England Historical and Genealogical Register, XXIX, 48-53, 141-145 ; and, in the 
same periodical, "An Autobiographical Memoir of William Rotch," XXXI, 262, XXXII, 
36-42, 151-155- 



1782'] THE STRAIN OF THE LONG WAR 263 

adherents broke into the jail and released him. The authori- 
ties retaliated by arresting three of the ringleaders among 
the rescuers, and committed them to jail in Northampton. A 
wave of excited protest swept the county, and a body of three 
hundred men so thoroughly overawed General Porter, despite 
the twelve hundred militiamen called out, that on a thirty- 
minute ultimatum he freed the prisoners on their personal 
paroles. 

The farmers and mechanics of the western counties, espe- 
cially the poorer class, were ripe for the arguments of 
malcontents and agitators. 

The absence of so many men In the continental armies — 
and from time to time in the militia — had wrought its mark 
upon the farms and homes they left: crops not planted, or 
ill-cared for, cattle too often neglected, fences and buildings 
out of repair. All of these things, many times multiplied, 
changed plain living to poverty; and poverty in hundreds of 
Instances reached to the borders of destitution. The fluctua- 
tion and depreciation of the continental currency — and, 
finally, its extinction — had also brought losses and hardships 
to many individuals. And the second year under the new con- 
stitution had seen the commencement of a great rush to the 
courts by creditors with claims held in abeyance- by the un- 
settled conditions of the earlier years of the war. 

These conditions lent special weight to the bitter complaints 
against the taxes levied. It was held that the legislature was 
wasteful of the public moneys; and it was charged that on the 
poorer counties was laid an unjust share of the expenses of 
the war, the while merchants and others well-to-do were 
fattening on it. 

The agitation and discontent had passed beyond the hope 
of relief by either state or continental action. In Hamp- 
shire County, where it rose the highest, many planned a 
return to allegiance to Great Britain in the belief that they 
could thus lighten their burdens. 

"We have had it huzza'd for George the third within 8 



264 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 54 

rods of our Court House," wrote Joseph Hawley, June 24, 
from Northampton. "You would be astonished," he de- 
clared, "to know with what amazing rapdity the spirit of the 
Insurgts propagates. Many are infected with it, of whom 
you never would have the least suspicion. We are not certain 
who, besides the Devil, sprang Ely at first. But we are not 
at loss who ventilates the flame, for the fire is now become 
such a flame as I cannot describe to you. The General Court 
have not had any affair of greater magnitude before them 
since the Revolution." ^^ 

A most critical condition was threatened. On March 4 
the English House of Commons had extinguished even the 
most stubborn British hope of continuing the conflict, by Its 
declaration that it would consider as enemies to His Majesty 
and the country, all those who should advise, or attempt, the 
further prosecution of offensive war on the Continent of 
North America ; but domestic discord In the United States 
would assuredly lessen American prestige and might thus 
very unfavorably affect the terms of the agreement establish- 
ing peace. 

So delicate a situation demanded both prompt and careful 
handling, and the General Court on July 3 appointed a joint 
committee to visit Hampshire County "to enquire Into the 
grounds of dissatisfaction, to correct misinformations, to re- 
move groundless jealousies." On this committee Ward and 
Nathaniel Gorham represented the House, and Samuel 
Adams represented the Senate. 

On the same day the legislature checked the enforcement 
of execution sales for unsatisfied judgments by passing a 
"Tender Act" which made cattle and other specified articles 
legal tender at prices to be determined by impartial arbitra- 
tors. This served as an effective temporary safeguard for 
debtors, but its operation covered only twelve months and 
acceptance of "tender" was not compulsory on creditors who 

^ Joseph Hawley to Caleb Strong. — Original letter, Hazvley Papers, New York Pub- 
lic Library. Printed in part in Trumbull's History of Northampton, Mass., II, 465—466. 



1782] THE STRAIN OF THE LONG WAR 265 

had previously commenced proceedings. If they refused it, 
they could not add new costs or interest to the amounts due 
them, but they could — and a great many did — hold their 
judgments over awaiting the expiration of the act. And a 
great many other creditors, who had not commenced pro- 
ceedings before its passage, also held back their claims 
awaiting its expiration. 

The General Court committee reached Northampton on 
July 27 and thence proceeded to Conway, Ely's home town, 
their intent being "to visit all those Towns where Discontent 
had in any great Degree prevail'd." 

At Conway it was found that though the inhabitants, as 
individuals, "convers'd freely and publicly with the Commit- 
tee upon Matters supposed by them to be just Grounds of 
Uneasiness," they were averse to going on record with a 
separate town memorial. A special meeting, July 29, called 
at the request of the committee, voted "that the Town had 
no Grievances destinct from the County." They preferred 
the greater strength of a united county protest. 

The same sentiment was voiced by delegates attending 
from thirteen other towns, so it was decided to call a county 
convention, to be held at Hatfield commencing August 7. 

Delegates from forty-five towns came together at Hatfield, 
and the convention proceedings quickly assumed the form of 
an interrogatory debate. The initiative was taken by the 
leaders of the insurgent element and they poured out their 
complaints against the government. 

Replying to them, the members of the committee explained 
the reasons for the various acts and resolves passed by the 
legislature. 

The story of the three principal days is succinctly told in a 
contemporary diary :^^ 

"Thursday 8. The Mobb began to tell their Grievances 
and the [Committee] to answer and to give Information. 

^"Jonathan Judd's. — Trumbull, History of Northampton, Mass., II, 468. 



266 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 54 

The Day was spent in this way. The Mobbists began to feel 
themselves more a ground than they expected. The Tories 
who are spectators in very great plenty do not hold their 
Heads so High as they have done of late: 

"Fryday 9. Began where we left off. Afterwards chose 
a committee to state Grievances to us. Then the Mobb still 
continued to tell their Grievances but got upon the Shoals 
long before Night. Committee report near Night. 

"Saturday 10. Began in the Morning upon the Report of 
the Com"^^ which consisted of 8 Articles. 3 we passed 
and the rest we through out. Friends of the Mobb could not 
get things to their Mind. They [are] Disappointed and 
Chagrined. What they may produce is uncertain, but 'tis 
certain that they cannot answer the arguments of the Com"^^^ 
or gainsay the facts they asserted. The appearance is that 
there is more probability of their being still, if nothing more. 
Convention broke up about 6." 

In the resolutions with which the convention concluded its 
sessions, the delegates held to their belief that the county was 
"burdened with more than its just proportion of taxes" and 
"that the grants of money by the General Court to particular 
persons and officers" were too large, and they expressed the 
opinion that "the common people" were "kept in unnecessary 
and unhappy ignorance of the state of the public debt and the 
appropriations of the public money"; but they promised sup- 
port of the government "to the utmost of their power," and 
disclaimed the design to renounce the "Great American 
cause" and to "return into a state of subjection to Great 
Britain." They declared that the disturbances in the 
county had "in a great measure arisen from misrepresenta- 
tions and mistakes." 

They also resolved to return "sincere thanks to the honor- 
able Gentlemen of the Committee ... for the satisfactory 
information they have given this Convention concerning the 
state of public affairs ; and for the patient, friendly, & gener- 



jy82'] THE STRAIN OF THE LONG WAR 267 

ous Attention with which they have heard our various 
representations." 

The result of the committee's visit was very gratifying 
to the legislature, and on October 2 it passed a formal resolu- 
tion "highly approving" the proceedings of the committee 
and "their indefatigable and successful endeavours In so 
great a degree quieting the disturbances that had arisen." 

The committee had indeed so efficiently discharged its 
mission that Massachusetts reassumed a united front of pa- 
triotic determination to reap the full profits of independence. 

Thus again had Artemas Ward well served his country by 
employing in its behalf the influence he drew from his inti- 
mate knowledge of the life and thought and sentiments of the 
rural communities of his state. Samuel Adams' name added 
luster and high ability to the committee — one readily pictures 
the force of his addresses and arguments — but in the rural 
townships (as several House elections had proved) Ward's 
quiet imperturbability held the greater strength. 

Meantime, through all that summer, and on through the 
autumn, continued the negotiations toward a preliminary 
treaty of peace. Many obstacles delayed agreement. Two 
of them vitally concerned the people of Massachusetts: the 
northeastern boundary line and the northern fisheries. Eng- 
land claimed a substantial part of the present state of Maine, 
and both England and France planned to withhold from the 
new nation its old fruitful participation in the fisheries. 

During the winter, reports were circulated that England 
planned to emphasize her claim on the Maine territory by 
extending her lines westerly from Penobscot to the east bank 
of the Kennebec.'^" Public apprehension made itself strongly 

"" "The situation of the Eastern part of this Commonwealth is very Alarming. The 
late Movements of the Enemy plainly indicate that they Intend to Possess themselves of 
all that Country that lies between Kenebeck & Nova Scotia, a Country Contiguous to a 
British Province and from which Brittain may be supplied with Masts, Their West India 
Islands with Lumber, & the European States with fish." — Lieutenant-Governor Thomas 
Cushing to Samuel Holten, delegate to the federal congress, February 9, 1783 (Original 
letter, Danjorth Collection, Henkels sale, Philadelphia, December 11, 1913). 



268 ARTEMAS WARD [^ffe 55 

felt, and the General Court on February 8, 1783,''^ wrote to 
Washington asking him to send northward a force sufficient 
to drive the English from Penobscot — "or at least such a 
number as will confine them to their present possessions," 
reminding him that for years Massachusetts had been "con- 
stantly throwing in forces and supplies" to the assistance 
of her brethren in the south, even when the "enemy ravaged 
within our own borders," and that at the present time, when 
"there is no particular object that seems to engage the atten- 
tion of the army," it seemed only just that the other states 
should reciprocate. 

The delivery of this request for assistance was entrusted 
to Major-General Benjamin Lincoln — he who had acted as 
general officer of the Massachusetts state troops during 
Ward's continental command in Boston — and Stephen Hig- 
ginson, one of the Massachusetts delegates to the federal 
congress, 

Washington could not comply with the request, whether or 
not he wished to, as Congress was considering an attempt to 
reduce New York if peace negotiations should fail,^^ and 
such an undertaking would require every available man in 
the American army; but Lincoln, from headquarters at New- 
burgh, sent a reassuring letter to Ward, saying "There can- 
not in my opinion be any doubt but that we shall receive all 
the succour we wish for unless the reduction of New York 
should be undertaken.""^ 

Washington's own reply to the General Court was not so 
pleasingly worded. His conclusions, and the reasons for 
them, were respectfully accepted, but an apparently dispar- 
aging reference to the suggested campaign against Penobscot 
aroused some ill feehng, despite his complimentary reference 

'^^Massachusetts General Court Records, XLIV, 304-305. 

^- The Provisional Articles of Peace had been signed by England and the United States 
on November 30, 1782, and toward the end of February, 1783, the newspapers 
published a report to that effect, but official advice of the signing did not reach the 
United States until March 12, 1783. 

^'February 18. 1783. — Original letter, Artcmas JVard MSS. 



lySs] THE CONCLUSION OF PEACE 269 

to Massachusetts as a state "whose exertions have been so 
great and meritorious."^^ Ward, writing to Lincoln, re- 
marked that Washington "gives credit to the Exertions of 
the States and informs he shall readily (when in his power) 
consent to any Judicious Plan for the removal of the Invaders 
of this State; Which I take to be a slap, for which I shall not 
be in a hurry to thank him. If peace takes place, we shall not 
I trust want his aid for that purpose." ^^ 

Massachusetts' impatience was heightened by the laxity of 
several of the other states; by their avoidance of their share 
of the support of the continental army. 

"How is it," demanded Thomas Cushing of Samuel Hol- 
ten, "that while we are exerting every nerve for furnishing 
our Quota of Men and Money, Virginia as well as some of 
the other States do little or nothing P"^^ Will this be born 
with longl Will not our People be out of Patience? and 
will not such a Conduct, if long persisted in, tend to shake the 
Union ?"3'^ 

It was indeed good news that reached Boston the following 
month of the arrival in Philadelphia, March 12, of authentic 
advice that Provisional Articles of Peace had been signed by 
the English and United States representatives, and that the 
firmness and ability of the American commissioners had in- 
serted in them England's recognition of the United States' 
right to the Maine territory in dispute,"^ and also an agree- 
ment "that the people of the United States shall continue to 
enjoy unmolested the right to take fish of every kind on the 
Grand Bank and on all the other banks of Newfoundland; 

^* February 22, 1783. — Original letter, Massachusetts Archives, CCIV, 322-324. 

^Original letter, April 23, 1783, Fogg Collection, Maine Historical Society. 

^' The same quotas had been assigned to Massachusetts and Virginia for 1783, but 
Virginia furnished only 629 men for the continental line, against 4370 from Massa- 
chusetts. — American State Papers, Military Affairs, I, 14. 

^^ February 9, 1783 — the same letter quoted on page 267, note 30. 

^' Later, there came controversies over the identification of the Saint Croix River agreed 
upon as the southerly part of the eastern border, and, in succeeding years, much wrangling 
over the intent to be drawn from words and phrases defining the northeastern boundary. 
But such troubles were of the future — they did not dim the satisfaction felt in Massa- 
chusetts that the line of British dominion was set well to the east of the Penobscot. 



270 ARTEMAS WARD [Age 55 

also In the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and at all other places in 
the sea where the inhabitants of both countries used at any 
time heretofore to fish. And ... on such part of the coast 
of Newfoundland as British fishermen shall use . . . and 
also on the coasts, bays, and creeks of all other of his Britan- 
nic Majesty's dominions in America." 

The Provisional Articles could not be transferred to a 
definitive treaty until the completion of a peace agreement 
by Great Britain and France, but they tended greatly to 
clear the political atmosphere and relieve the tension under 
which the country had been laboring. And they were soon 
followed by word that Great Britain and France (and Spain) 
had also signed preliminary articles. 

It was with a well satisfied heart that Ward read the 
proclamation of Congress, April 12, announcing the cessation 
of hostilities. 

Ward was not a candidate for the Massachusetts House of 
1 783-1 784, but he was a much interested observer of the 
Hancock-Bowdoln contest for the governorship. "It is aston- 
ishing," he wrote to Lincoln, "to see the Arts that are made 
use of to keep the little man [Hancock] in the chair. . . . 
Low art and cunning never was more prevalent since my re- 
membrance than at this day. He that espouseth the little 
one's cause is represented as a friend to America : but he that 
is in favor of Mr. Bowdoin is at once dub'd an Enemy and 
not to be trusted. ... In some [towns] he has made but a 
very indifferent figure, howsoever I expect nothing but he will 
be chosen and the State suffer the Calamity one year more at 
least."39 

The "calamity" happened as Ward expected, but he prob- 
ably did not let it trouble him very long, for in the fall came 
official advice of the definitive treaty with England."*" 

It was during the autumn of 1782 and the early part of 

'"Original letter, April 23, 1783, Fogg Collection, Maine Historical Society. 

"Signed September 3, 1783; received in the United States in November, 1783; ratified 
by Congress January 14, 1784; ratified by George IV April 9; ratifications exchanged 
May 12. 



lySs] THE CONCLUSION OF PEACE 271 

the year of definite peace, that Ward was frequently asso- 
ciated with Timothy Dwight, the famous divine, revolutionary 
chaplain, writer, and educator — then Representative from 
Northampton — who recorded his opinion of Shrewsbury's 
representative m the following terms :^^ 

"I knew General Ward well: and having been often with 
him on Committees, charged with interesting business, neces- 
sarily developing the views, and principles of the several 
members, had a very fair opportunity to learn Ijis character. 
He was possessed of an excellent understanding, directed 
chiefly to the practical interests of mankind; was of few 
words, and those always pointing to the purpose in hand; 
was frank, undisguised, of inflexible integrity, an unwarping 
public spirit, and a fixed adherence to what he thought right: 
a subject which he rarely mistook. His reverence for the 
Christian religion was entire; and his life adorned Its precepts. 
I have known no person, to whom might be applied the 'Jus- 
tum et tenacem propositi virum' of Horace with more pro- 
priety, or whose firm mind would be less shaken by the 
'CIvium ardor, prava jubentium,' or the 'Vultus Instantis 
Tyranni.' "^^ 

"Dwight, Travels in Nciv England and New York, I, 370. 

^^ The quotations — the "man just and steadfast in his purpose" . . . "the excited 
citizens demanding evil" . . . the "frowning face of the tyrant" — are from the open- 
ing lines of the famous Third Ode of Book III. 



CHAPTER XIV 

1784-1787: Age 56-5g 

The financial distress and discontent in Massachusetts. "Shays' Re- 
bellion." The fear that England was fomenting the disturbances. 
General Ward harangues the rebels from the steps of the Worces- 
ter County court-house. 

THE United States had won a place among the self- 
governing nations of the earth, but greater than ever 
was its need of the highest wisdom and the strongest leader- 
ship that it could muster. 

The inevitable difficulties of reconstruction were multiplied 
by the lack both of an effective national government and of 
a national currency. 

The Confederacy, dangerously weak even under war's 
driving necessity for unity of purpose, became after the con- 
clusion of peace completely powerless to hold the states in 
harmony; and equally impotent to cope with the commercial 
and financial problems, international and domestic, which 
beset them. There was everywhere a great deal of dan- 
gerous unrest. 

A stronger union was needed, a stronger central govern- 
ment — and a general accord of state governments — to foster 
commerce and to set running again the wheels of normal 
peacetime life and occupations. But jealousy, pride, and 
lethargy stayed men's hands. So, also, did over-rigid adher- 
ence to political tenets, and morbid fear of what might evolve 
from opening the door to a change In the form of national 
government. 

In Massachusetts, the seven years' contest had spelled in- 

272 



1784-1785^ SHAYS' REBELLION 273 

creased prosperity for a considerable number of individuals: 
for some merchants; for many inhabitants of the coast com- 
munities which profited from privateering; for speculators 
with cheaply purchased soldiers' certificates or other claims; 
for army contractors. But for a much greater number — and 
they included particularly the small farmers, artisans, and 
laborers of the inland counties — it had in general meant the 
laying of heavy additional burdens on their always meager 
resources. 

Peace and independence had come, but Important sources 
of Massachusetts' pre-war prosperity were held closed by 
English orders which barred American ships from the British 
West Lidles and forbade the importation into them of Amer- 
ican-caught fish, placed an excessive duty on whale oil, and in 
other ways obstructed efforts to revive American commerce. 
France and Spain also, though to minor effect, raised im- 
peding barriers. 

This crippling of the fishing, shipping, and ship-building 
industries imposed a serious handicap on Massachusetts. It 
delayed the return of the privateersmen to their peacetime 
callings and affected the value of every farmer's crop — In'' 
many cases, added to the other troubles of the times, re- 
sulting in Its lying unused and unmarketable in his barn. 

Most successful had been the national outcome of the 
contest with Great Britain, but Its initial legacy was an op- 
pressive weight of continental, state, and town indebtedness, 
and an excessively disordered condition of individual 
finances. 

The alarming aggregate of private indebtedness repre- 
sented the accumulations of several years — their normal totals 
enhanced both by the Inflation resulting from cheap paper 
money and by war's claims on men's time and services. 

Many causes had operated to delay the payment of debts : 
the lack of an adequate circulating medium, and the unsettled 
condition of trade; the individual unrest, and the lessened 
Individual industry inevitable under conditions of abnormal 



274 ARTEMAS WARD [Age 36-37 

excitement; the (also inevitable) looseness of thought, and 
— where possible — extravagance of living. 

During much of the time preceding, and also during the 
first years of, the Revolution, a majority had practised self- 
denial, but later had come the reaction so severely censured 
by contemporary writers and legislators. The epidemic of 
self-indulgence was a natural result of war conditions. The 
excessive severity of its punishment was due, largely, to the 
lack of a national currency. 

An emission of continental-state paper money had fol- 
lowed the expiration of the continental paper money in 1781, 
but it enjoyed only a short life. 

For a while its place was generously filled by specie flowing 
in through various channels : from the disbursements of the 
British and French armies; from trade with Havana and 
other points under the protection of the French fleet; from 
prize ships, etc. 

In eastern Massachusetts the atmosphere of prosperity 
had been further stimulated by the expenditures of the French 
fleet during its visit to Boston after the battle of Yorktown. 

Soon, however, this foreign specie began to disappear. 
Large amounts were shipped to England and elsewhere to 
pay for the great quantities of goods imported — goods which 
filled merchants' shelves to overflowing, bought at prices with 
which the smaller American industries could not compete; and 
much of the remainder was gathered into the coffers of the 
"money-holders" — and by them closely hoarded. 

In the central and western counties of Massachusetts, trade 
came to a paralytic halt, labor could find no employment, and 
entire communities found themselves reduced to the level of 
barter. 

Vehement demands arose for paper money to make people 
prosperous again. 

It was the natural desire of private creditors to realize on 
their claims — many of them long deferred — which finally 
raised class antagonism to the highest point. There were not 



1784-1785] SHAYS' REBELLION 275 

wanting creditors keen to take the fullest advantage of the 
abnormal conditions, just as in the earlier legal-tender paper- 
money days there had not been lacking debtors endeavoring 
to evade a just settlement of their indebtedness. 

The flood of suits that had set in soon after the opening 
of the courts under the state constitution, reached a great 
height in 1783, 1784, and 1785, continuing on into 1786. In 
many hundreds of cases, decisive action had been deferred as 
a result of the Tender Act and by court extensions, and by 
agreement; but such deferments could prove of only tempo- 
rary service, and one after the other they broke down, leav- 
ing a large part of the population of Massachusetts almost 
hopelessly entangled in debt and legislation. 

Very precarious, in truth, was then the position of a debtor 
in Massachusetts. 

A debt contracted when money was cheap and plentiful, 
gained hugely in burden if to be paid when currency was 
nearly extinct. As cash was almost unobtainable, a judgment 
was quickly translated into execution ; and execution meant the 
seizure of any or all property that a man might have — there 
was then no "homestead" or any other exemption, save only, 
by common law, a man's tools and absolutely essential cloth- 
ing and household furniture. As the next step, the debtor 
would see his belongings publicly sold at ruinous prices, for 
few, save the creditors, were financially able to bid at the 
sales. 

As a final weapon, the barbarous laws permitted imprison- 
ment for debt (or for unpaid taxes) — even for a small bal- 
ance unrealized by the sale of all a man's possessions; and 
the abominable jails were quickly filled — were crowded to the 
very roofs — with debtors. 

Especially hard hit were the returned soldiers. Their 
farms, or their other private affairs, had suffered in their 
absence and many of them were in debt for necessaries for 
their families. For their back pay, they had received certi- 
ficates which they had been obliged to sell at heavy discount. 



276 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 56-58 

They had no money to show for their services or to apply upon 
their obligations. 

In Worcester County, 104 prisoners were committed dur- 
ing 1785. Ten of them had been sentenced on criminal 
counts — the other 94 were jailed for debt.^ They were all 
herded together in a building rotten and fetid with age — the 
poorest of them crowded "fifteen into one small room."^ 

The propertyless debtor was utterly at the mercy of his 
creditor. His creditor, by paying a small charge for board 
(only four shillings and sixpence a week), could keep him in 
jail as long as he liked. A judgment, with the threat of in- 
carceration in such a pest-hole as the Worcester County jail 
of 1785, could, in many cases, be used to control a man's 
labor as effectively as If he were a slave. 

To parallel today the Massachusetts conditions of 1785, 
imagine that, of the population of New York City, 10,000 
men — none of them guilty of any crime except that of being 
in debt — had been stripped of all their possessions and thrown 
into crowcied dungeons to be kept there at the will and whim 
of their creditors; and that the threat of similar calamity 
swung over the heads of a hundred thousand men of the city! 
To gauge the emotions that would be aroused, know also 
that a majority of the men thus imprisoned are debtors be- 
cause of economic conditions which they had been powerless 
to control; that many of them have seen possessions worth 
much more than the sum of their debts sold for a mere frac- 
tion of those debts because money had almost disappeared; 
and that a great number of them are ex-soldiers returned 
from a victorious war. Broaden the view by spreading the 
same conditions over a large part of the country, and heighten 
the tension by a vigorous community of feeling — for the men 
thus jailed in Massachusetts, and the men threatened with 
jail, were not of large cities where nelghborllness is little 

^ These figures are drawn from a contemporary register preserved in the Worcester 
County jail. Study of the register suggests that a complete total, if obtainable, would 
give a still higher number of debtors jailed. 

^Report of a committee of the Court of General Sessions, March 28, 1786. 



1784-1786'] SHAYS' REBELLION 277 

known, but chiefly of small towns where (in those days) 
blood ties were strong and neighborly fellowship was a living 
creed. 

The pressure was kept at full by the hungry competition 
of creditors — each one beset by the fear that some other 
might forestall him. There were no insolvency laws to guard 
the distribution of a living debtor's estate: the first man to 
obtain an execution might swallow it all. 

These serious flaws in the social system gaped into chasms 
under the financial stress of the times and imperiled the 
structure of the commonwealth. 

The people of Massachusetts had brought themselves to 
believe that the end of the war would mean the end of their 
troubles. Instead, especially in the central and western 
counties, their burdens were heavier than ever and their con- 
dition much more onerous than when under the "tyranny" of 
Great Britain. 

Who was to blame for this? How should they relieve 
themselves from the pressure of their loads? 

The taverns — and wherever else men congregated — again 
heard the excited arguments and angry accusations that had 
preceded the outbreak of the Revolution. 

Those who had complained and protested in 1782 — and 
later — now held many new grievances. And those of tory 
inclination — open or concealed — eagerly swayed backward to 
the hope of renewed allegiance to England. 

Lawyers were denounced as public enemies and as unfit 
to serve in the assembly. The legislature was upbraided for 
the weight of taxation, and it was charged that the additional 
taxes laid in July, 1784, and March, 1786, to take up the 
notes given to the soldiers for back pay, had been promoted 
by speculators who had purchased the notes at excessive 
discounts. The lower courts were held to be instruments of 
oppression and an unnecessary expense. Merchants, as en- 
couraging extravagance and damaging domestic trade by their 
importations, were assailed as the root of economic troubles. 



278 ARTEMAS WARD l^^e 56-38 

There was an undercurrent of suspicion that the "rich 
men" of Boston were planning "to bring the state into lord- 
ships" and that to obtain their end they had deliberately 
brought about "a tax so heavy on the people that there was 
not sufficient money in circulation to pay for it."^ 

Equally dangerous to the peace of the state were charges 
or insinuations that the burdens under which it suffered were 
made heavier by the monopolizing of power and position 
by family cliques.^ People began to wonder if they had 
merely cast off one set of undesired rulers for the privilege 
of being weighed down by others yet more self-seeking. 

^ Memoirs of "Billy" Hlbhard, Minister of the Gospel, 50. 
* Below is an article published in the Massachusetts Spy, April 14, 1784: 
"Before the revolution, Mr. Hutchinson was Lieutenant Governor, Mr. Oliver was 
Secretary of the Province, Peter Oliver and Foster Hutchinson Esqrs. were Judges of the 
Superior Court: The people were alarmed at that accumulation of power in one family 
and connection — they very justly considered it a source of corrupt influence dangerous to 
publick liberty ; and accordingly exerted every effort in their power to dissolve the com- 
bination — but unhappily their means were not adequate to their security. Since the 
revolution, the offices of Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of the Commonwealth, Justice 
of the Peace for the County of Suffolk, Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial Court, 
Clerk of that Court by a brother of the Chief Justice, and another of the Judges, Judge 
of the Maritime Court, and one of the Council of the Commonwealth, and a Judge of 
Probate, are held by one family and connection, without any apprehension from the 
influence and power. 

"Is publick virtue now so universally prevalent that there is no necessity for adverting 
to circumstances of this nature? Or are the extraordinary merits of this family sufficient 
to justify the inattention ? I will not inquire what they were in the beginning of the 
contest with Great Britain, or whether their conduct was so uniform and vigorous in the 
cause of their country as to justify the present confidence, and predilection in their favour. 
— I leave these questions to the discussion of others, and only observe that it appears 
to me, the combination is strong, that the conclusion is obvious, unless the integrity and 
ability of these men, secure us from danger, or their incapacity renders them harmless." 

A host of readers also approvingly read "A Shorter Catechism," widely distributed 
at about the same time. It was printed in the Neiv York Packet, February 5, 1784, the 
Massachusetts Gazette, February 17, 1784, and elsewhere. It includes the following 
Questions and Ans-wers: 

zuer. A servant to the rich and task 
master to the poor. 
Executioners of the law. 
Rods of correction. 
Dependence on nothing. 
Yes. 

The army. 
Cheat 'em. 

Disposition to repay benefactors. 
Forgetfulness of benefits. 
Soldiers' notes at 30 per cent dis- 
count." 



"Q' 


uestlon. What is law ? 


Jn 


Q- 


What are Courts of Justice? 


A. 


Q- 


What are lawyers? 


A. 


Q. 


What is independence ? 


A. 


Q- 


Do we enjoy it? 


A. 


Q. 


Who gain'd it for us ? 


A. 


b. 


How shall we reward tliem? 


A. 


~Q- 


What is gratitude? 


A. 


Q. 


What is public gratitude? 


A. 


Q. 


What is public credit? 


A. 



1784-1786^ SHAYS' REBELLION 279 

Carrying the tide higher was the swelling restlessness of 
the young men back from camp with no settled prospects and, 
many of them, impelled by the doctrine that those who had 
fought for their country should have a full share in all its 
property and resources, no matter how or by whom held.*^ 

And surging upward again were the chronically discon- 
tented who see only that others are more prosperous than 
they and who bear an ever-present resentment of that fact 
and an ever-ready hatred toward those thus favored. The 
laboring of communities in the aftermath of the war gave 
this class both opportunity and many temporary allies. 

The breaking point came in 1786. The spring elections 
had placed in the House a number of Representatives who 
leaned toward the debtors' side, but they produced no relief, 
and when the legislature adjourned on July 8, reliance on con- 
stitutional methods suddenly vanished — legislative process 
appeared too slow for the thousands of men caught in the 
quicksands of the times. As an evil background, prison con- 
ditions became continuously more revolting — by June 30 the 
Worcester County jail was so choked with debtors that 
twenty-six were confined in one small garret.^ Debtors yet 
free, and the relatives and friends of debtors both free and 
imprisoned, turned angrily from talk and argument to the 
determination to prevent any further court procedure until 
aid should come from, or be forced from, the legislature — or 
until a new legislature could be elected. 

The debtors' reasoning was simple. If the courts and 
present legal processes continue uninterrupted, we shall lose 
our property, be in danger of jail for debt, and be 
disfranchised.''^ If we prevent the courts sitting, we shall, 

° "Their creed is that the property of the United States has been protected from the 
confiscations of Britain by the joint exertions of all, and therefore ought to be the com- 
mon property of all." — Knox to Washington, October 23, 1786. Brooks, Henry Knox, 
194; Drake, Life and Correspondence of Henry Knox, 91—92. 

^Report of a committee of the Court of General Sessions, June 13, 1786. 

' The new constitution contained a property qualification restricting the votes for Gov- 
ernor, Senators, and Representatives. It was half as high again as the qualification re- 
quired of electors of Representatives under the Province charter. 



28o ARTEMAS WARD {Age 58 

for a time at least, keep both our possessions and our votes; 
and perhaps a new legislature will devise a way out of our 
troubles. 

The fallacy of the plan, as many discovered later, was 
the impossibility of continued obstruction of the courts with- 
out incurring the responsibihty and dangers of armed oppo- 
sition to both the state and the national governments, but its 
apparent promise served to unite those in distress — and to 
their standard flocked all the restless and disloyal. 

In the year preceding the Revolution, people had learned 
the political strength of county conventions, and now town- 
ship after township turned toward the same panacea. 

The first gathering to make its resolutions felt was that of 
Worcester County at Leicester on August 15. 

Delegates from thirty-seven towns came together to discuss 
grievances and debate remedies. 

They recorded their objection to the sitting of the legisla- 
ture in Boston: they felt that in the capital it was too much 
under the influence or the domination of the wealthier classes; 
they wanted it to meet elsewhere, believing that it would then 
be more responsive to the needs of the state in general. They 
emphasized next the need for a circulating medium. And 
they continued with complaints of "abuses in the practice of 
the law, and the exorbitance of the fee-table" ; the existence 
of the Courts of Common Pleas "in their present mode of 
administration"; the appropriation of the impost and excise 
revenue for the payment of the interest of the state securities; 
the "unreasonable and unnecessary grants" made by the Gen- 
eral Court "to the Attorney General and others"; the govern- 
ment employees "being too numerous and having too great 
salaries" ; and the state "granting aid or paying moneys to 
Congress, while our Public accounts remain unsettled." 

Ward's influence with the discontented of his fellow citi- 
zens, even with those of his home town, was this time un- 
availing. 

Shrewsbury had elected him Representative in 1785 and 



1786} SHAYS' REBELLION 281 

1786, and he had been made Speaker of the House (first, 
February 3, 1786, for the concluding weeks of 1785— 1786 by 
a vote of fifty-two out of eighty-one; and then by reelection 
for 1786— 1787 by ninety-nine out of a hundred^), but in 
this new revolt against conditions it turned suddenly from 
his leadership. As Speaker of the House of Representatives 
and Chief Justice of the Court of Common Pleas for Worces- 
ter County, he stood as too conspicuous a figure of the govern- 
ment which the discontented held responsible for their 
troubles. 

Also there were, probably, many to declare that he had 
become prosperous, and therefore anathema, because he had 
during 1784 and 1785 enlarged his house by the addition of 
the "New Part," thus changing it from a seven-room home to 
a more imposing dwelling of eleven rooms. In truth, 
Ward never acquired the gift of money-making, and his mod- 
est investments were the result of rigid personal economy. 
The "New Part" had not been built because of overflowing 
prosperity but because more space was needed to house to- 
gether his own family and that of his son, Thomas Walter, 
who on its completion came to live under the same roof, 
bringing with him his wife and two babies. General Ward's 
repeated absences — in Boston and Philadelphia — made this 
arrangement very desirable, especially as his wife's health 
was failing.^ 

The Leicester gathering was succeeded by a Hampshire 
County convention at Hatfield; and that was followed by the 
insurgents' forcible closing of the Court of Common Pleas at 
Northampton on August 29. 

Bowdoin — governor now, for his second term — met the 
Northampton outbreak with a proclamation (September 2) 

* On the afternoon of the same day that gave him this all but unanimous election as 
Speaker, the House for the second time elected him Senator, but he again declined. 

There were four sessions in the critical legislative year of 1786-7: May 31, 1786, 
to July 8, 1786; September 27, 1786, to November 18, 1786; January 31, 1787, to 
March 10, 1787; April 25, 1787, to May 3, 1787. Ward was present every day. 

* After several years of ill health. General Ward's wife died December 13, 1788. 



282 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 58 

calling upon all officers, civil and military, and the public in 
general "to unite in preventing and suppressing all such trea- 
sonable proceedings," but the proclamation had little effect 
and the insurgent leaders pressed their plans with complete 
disregard of it. 

Two men had by this time attained prominence in the 
movement — Daniel Shays of Pelham and Luke Day of West 
Springfield. Both had served as captains in the Revolutionary 
army. It is said that Day was the stronger character, but the 
Insurrection is indelibly stamped with Shays' name. 

The insurgents' next purpose was the closing of the 
Worcester County Courts of Common Pleas and General 
Sessions to be held commencing September 5. Five hundred 
cases were to come before the justices of the Common Pleas — 
a large grist — fewer than at preceding sessions but equal to 
the average of an entire year prior to the Revolution. 

Bowdoin had followed his proclamation by orders both to 
the sheriff of Worcester County and to Major-General War- 
ner of the county militia to protect the courts, but this pre- 
caution had no more efficacy than the proclamation. Popular 
sentiment paralyzed authority, and on the night of Septem- 
ber 4 a body of armed men, commanded by Captain Adam 
Wheeler of Hubbardston, entered Worcester and found no 
difficulty in taking possession of the court-house. 

Early the next morning Wheeler's company was joined by 
new contingents under several other insurgent leaders. 

Shortly before noon Ward left the house of Joseph Allen ^'^ 
and walked toward the court-house^^ to open court. He was 

*" Clerk of the courts and a nephew of Samuel Adams. 

^ This was the "Second Court House." a wooden structure about 42 feet front by 
33 feet in depth, built 1751— 1754 near the site of the north wing of the present court- 
house. In 1803, soon to be succeeded by the "Old Brick Court House," it was rolled 
along Main Street and thence down Franklin Street, twenty yoke of oxen hauling, to the 
locality now known as Trumbull Square (then a beautiful rural section), there to serve 
as a residence for four generations of the Trumbull family. 

In 1SS6, shortly after the death of Mrs. George A. (Louisa Clap) Trumbull (Decem- 
ber 5, 1S85), the house was rented to Dr. Joseph H. Kelley, who used part of it himself 
(building an addition for a waiting room) and sublet the remainder. 

On June i, 1S92, the building was sold by the Trumbull heirs to Dr. Kelley and 








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1786] SHAYS' REBELLION 283 

accompanied by the other justices of the Common Pleas, a 
number of the justices of the Sessions, the clerk, the sheriff, 
court attendants, and members of the bar. 

Court-house Hill was thronged with men. On the out- 
skirts of the crowd stood a sentry, and he challenged the 
judges as they approached. Ward sharply ordered him to 
"present arms"; and the man, formerly a subaltern in Ward's 
own regiment, instinctively obeyed, saluted, and stepped aside 
to let his old commander pass. With the first honors thus 
readily won. Ward and the other members of his party re- 
sumed their progress, and the insurgents, following the ex- 
ample of the sentry, fell back to left and right and let them 
through. 

A curious repetition of that other walk through the ranks 
of armed men to the same court-house, staged in that same 
month twelve years before, when Ward, setting himself in 
opposition to his associates on the bench, had become marked 
as a leader of the people in the dangerous road to rebellion. 
Now, as Chief Justice, surrounded by a riotous mob of armed 
men, he as undauntedly faced them In opposition to their 
revolt against the authority of the state which he and they 
together had helped to erect. 

The judges reached the court-house, but at Its doors they 
were brought to a sudden stop by a row of men with fixed 
bayonets. 

Dr. William J. Delahanty (whose office was across the street), and in the spring of 
the following year it was again moved — though this time only a few feet — to make 
room for a brick apartment house, The Trumbull, No. 5 Trumbull Square. 

In 1899 its owners were about to demolish it in order to use its site for the construc- 
tion of another apartment house, No. 15 Trumbull Square, adjoining The Trumbull, but 
Miss Susan Trumbull came to the rescue, purchased it, and with infinite care supervised 
its taking down and rebuilding, restoring it to dignity as a residence again on its present 
site at No. 6 Massachusetts Avenue, near the home of the American Antiquarian Society. 

In tliis restoration, the style and dimensions of the original building were carefully 
followed, and the old material utilized where possible. The only modifications in exterior 
appearance are the added porches, side terrace, and rear extension. One cannot speak 
with the same certainty of the interior divisions because of the many changes that the 
building, h^s undergone — from court-house to mansion, from mansion to tenement, and 
back again to mansion, but the court-room (about 31 feet by 18 feet 8 inches), occupy- 
ing the entire southerly side of the second floor, is said to be an exact reproduction of the 
days of Shays' Rebellion, and its doors, mantels, and most of the wainscoting are from 
the original structure. 



284 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 58 

Ward sternly asked "who commanded the people there; 
by what authority, and for what purpose, they had met in 
hostile array?" 

"[Captain] Wheeler at length replied. After disclaiming 
the rank of leader, he stated, that they had come to relieve 
the distresses of the country, by preventing the sittings of 
courts until they could obtain redress of grievances." 

Ward answered "that he would satisfy them their com- 
plaints were without just foundation." He demanded that 
they "take away their bayonets and give him some position 
where he could be heard by his fellow citizens, and not by the 
leaders alone who had deceived and deluded them. . . ." 

"The insurgent officers, fearful of the effect of his deter- 
mined manner on the minds of their followers, interrupted. 
They did not come there, they said, to listen to long speeches, 
but to resist oppression: they had the power to compel sub- 
mission: and they demanded, an adjournment without day."^^ 

Ward peremptorily refused to reply to any proposition 
thus delivered. 

They then told him to "fall back." "The drum was beat, 
and the guard ordered to charge. The soldiers advanced, 
until the points of their bayonets pressed hard upon his 
breast," penetrating his robe, but he "stood as immoveable as 
a statue, without stirring a limb, or yielding an inch."^^ 

He told the men that he did not fear their bayonets, that 
"he was in the way of his duty" and that he was determined 
to do it: they might plunge their bayonets into his heart; that 
when opposed to his duty his life was of little consequence.^^ 

His intrepidity prevailed. The men lowered their bay- 
onets; and Ward turned and addressed the insurgent crowd. 

Then happened a strange thing — a minor miracle! 

Ward's public career had brought him many distinctions. 

^'^ Lincoln, History of TForcestcr, Mass., First edition, 135-136; 1862 edition, 119. 
^^ Ibid., First edition, 136; 1862 edition, 119. 

^* Massachusetts Gazette, September 8, 1786; Massachusetts Centiucl, September 9, 
1786. 



iy862 SHAYS' REBELLION 285 

He had commanded a regiment, and then an army; had pre- 
sided as judge and as Chief Justice; had headed the Council 
of Massachusetts, and served as Speaker of its House of 
Representatives — but he had never possessed the gift of 
ready speech. No orator he, but, on the contrary, incHned to 
stumble in public utterance. 

But now at this moment — when he saw the fruits of the 
long labors of a generation of Massachusetts patriots imper- 
iled by assaults within the temple — the gift which had been 
denied him as a young man and through his middle age came 
to him as he stood there, a man close upon his threescore 
years. 

In "clear and forcible argument" he pleaded the insurgents' 
own cause against themselves and opposed their attempts 
at political self-destruction. He "explained the dangerous ten- 
dency of their rash measures; admonished them that they 
were placing in peril the liberty acquired by the efforts and 
sufferings of years, plunging the country in civil war, and 
involving themselves and their families in misery; that the 
measures they had taken must defeat their own wishes; for 
the government would never yield that to force, which would 
be readily accorded to respectful representations; and warned 
them that the majesty of the laws, would be vindicated, and 
their resistance of its power avenged." ^^ 

For nearly two hours he spoke, frequently interrupted, but 
ready with retort and reply. Finally, turning to Captain 
Wheeler, he told him "that he had better take his men away; 
that they were waging war, which was treason; and that the 
consequence would be (here he made a short pause, and then 
added in a strong voice) the Gallows."^*'' ^"^ 

^° Lincoln, History of Worcester, Mass., First edition, 136; 1862 edition, 1 19-120. 

^"Massachusetts Centinel, September 9, 1786. 

'^ George Allen in his "Reminiscences" (Reminiscences of the Reverend George Allen 
of Worcester, 41—42) endeavored to rob Ward of the credit of his speech on the court- 
house steps September 5, 17S6. "General Ward of Shrewsbury," he wrote, "frequently 
visited my father. He had no command of language — was hesitating in his speech. The 
address to the insurgents in Worcester during Shays's Rebellion, which Lincoln prints in 



286 ARTEMAS WARD l^^e 58 

Ward made no further attempt to enter the court-house. 
Instead, as he ceased talking, he stepped down among the 
insurgents. One of their officers ordered the men to open 
ranks, and he walked slowly through, followed by the other 
members of his party, and made his way to the United States 
Arms tavern. ^^ 

Court was formally opened in the tavern, and messengers 
were dispatched calling upon the militia to come in for its 
protection. Adjournment was then taken until the following 
morning. 

The insurgents meantime continued their garrison of the 
court-house and patroled the town. 

The following day brought a large addition to their forces, 
but no aid or protection for the court. Instead of the militia- 
men, came word that their officers could not marshal them to 
oppose the insurgents: "for they were too generally in favor 
of the peoples measures." ^^ 

To attempt any further court procedure would have been 
futile. The Court of Common Pleas was adjourned sine die, 
all cases being continued to the next term ( December 5 ) . The 
Court of General Sessions was put over to November 21. 

The insurgents had won their point and prevented the 
county courts sitting to any effect, but Ward's firm stand 
for law and order, and his impassioned harangue on the court- 
house steps, shone as a beacon-light over the troubled seas. 
The little newspapers of those days all told the story. Its 

his History as having been made by Ward, is purely fictitious. He was incapable of such 
an efifort." 

Allen's contention is upset by the fact that Lincoln based his narration on a contem- 
porary account — written on the evening of the very day on which Ward made this, the 
longest speech of his life, and published in the newspapers of the period — Massachusetts 
Centinel, September 9 ; American Herald, September 1 1 ; Neiv York Packet, September 
18; and others. 

" Also known as "Patch's Tavern." Then a new and pretentious establishment, and 
the resort of visitors of consequence. Later, under Colonel Sikes (famous as a stage-coach 
proprietor), it became the center of stage-coach travel to, from, and through Worcester. 
Its third story was added by Sikes in 18 13. In the generations that have passed since 
the days of Shays' Rebellion, it has seen numerous changes of ownership, and some in 
construction, and borne several different names, its last being that of the E.xchange Hotel. 
It still stands (1921), but uncouth and dilapidated, an eyesore to the neighborhood. 

^^Massachusetts Archives, CXC, 233. 



lySdli SHAYS' REBELLION 287 

moral strength persisted and fructified long after Shays had 
fled and the rebellion had subsided. It still lives as one of 
the finest traditions of the county. 

Next to sit in Worcester was the Supreme Judicial Court — 
the old Superior Court under a new title. The insurgents, ap- 
prehensive of the result of carrying their opposition too high, 
kept themselves well in hand and made no attempt to inter- 
fere with its proceedings. Nor, on their part, did the justices 
take cognizance of the obstruction of the county court four- 
teen days earlier. They did, however, affirm judgments 
against debtors in almost all the cases (more than 250) 
brought before them on appeal from the county court, and 
thus turned upon themselves the wrath that had been with- 
held. 

From Worcester the justices went to Springfield. Their ar- 
rival found excitement running high and the insurgents gath- 
ering to prevent their holding court — the temper of the peo- 
ple growing steadily more violent from anxiety concerning 
the court's action on appeals in civil cases and, among the 
more prominent insurgents, from perturbation lest they be 
indicted for the blocking of the lower courts, despite the 
pacific attitude of the justices at their Worcester session. ^° 

The court opened on September 26 under the protection of 
several hundred militiamen commanded by General Shepard, 
but insurgent officers mustered a large enough force to render 
judicial procedure impossible and the court was adjourned on 
its third day without any cases coming before it. 

All eyes were now turned on the legislature, which had 
convened in special session on September 27. The gravity of 
the political situation was undeniable, but there was much dif- 
ference of opinion in the House on the course to be adopted, 

'"^ Historians give only the second reason — the insurgent leaders' fear of indictment — as 
the cause of the forcible closing of the Supreme Judicial Court at Springfield. That was a 
lesser cause. Its chief aim was to prevent the issuance of further judgments and execu- 
tions, for — as the debtors of Worcester County had discovered — it was largely futile to 
close the Court of Common Pleas unless the Supreme Judicial Court also was blocked. 
To obstruct the Supreme Judicial Court with the sole intent of protecting insurgent 
leaders would have been a poorly considered aim, for they would still remain liable to 
arrest and imprisonment by the General Court. 



288 ARTEMAS WARD [^i^e 58 

and insurgent sympathizers were loath to cast their votes for 
punitive, or even suppressive, measures. Agreement was, 
nevertheless, finally reached on a number of acts designed 
both to strengthen the hands of authority and to alleviate 
some of the grievances complained of. 

For the first purpose, the General Court effected (October 
28) a new law, with very severe penalties, ^^ against the as- 
sembling of armed persons, or of "riotous" or "tumultuous" 
assemblies whether armed or not; and (November 10) sus- 
pended the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus, at the same 
time empowering the governor and Council to bring about the 
arrest and Imprisonment without bail of any one whom they 
considered dangerous to the commonwealth. 

For the second purpose, it provided (November 8) for the 
payment of back taxes in kind; and a week later adopted a 
measure to lower the cost of many civil cases, passed a new 
Tender Act, and offered full pardon to those who should 
desist from illegal activities and take the oath of allegiance. 

It also (November 14) adopted an address to the people 
summarizing the state's indebtedness and explaining the ne- 
cessity of the taxes that had been laid. It demonstrated that 
some of the grievances complained of were unfounded and 
that the state officials were by no means overpaid; and it 
blamed the people for unnecessary extravagance — for wast- 
ing money on "gewgaws imported from Europe & the more 
pernicious produce of the West Indies" {i.e., rum, and 
molasses for conversion Into rum), and for Indulgence "In 
fantastical and expensive Fashions, and Intemperate living" 
— but it admitted that "the taxes have indeed been very 
great." Biblical comparisons, so familiar to the Massa- 
chusetts of those days, added vividness to the address. 

Meantime, the successes achieved in the closing of the 

^ The full penalty decreed for offenders was that they should forfeit all "lands, tene- 
ments, goods and chattels" and should further "be whipped thirty-nine stripes on the 
naked back, at the public whipping-post, and suffer imprisonment for a term not exceeding 
twelve months nor less than six months ; and once every three months during the said 
imprisonment receive the same number of stripes on the naked back, at the public whip- 
ping-post as aforesaid." 



1^86^ SHAYS' REBELLION 289 

courts, and the government's hesitancy to take effective action, 
increased the boldness of the Insurgent leaders. While the 
General Court sat. Insurgent circulars went out (October 23) 
to the towns of Hampshire County, Instructing them to as- 
semble their men, to see that they were all "well armed and 
equipped with sixty rounds each man, and to be ready to turn 
out at a minute's warning." 

As the disorders spread they raised two widely differing 
classes of political extremists : among the propertyless, some 
who planned for the state's plunge Into the communism of 
land;^^ and among the well-to-do of Revolutionary patriots, 
some — shocked into reactionism by the sight of the country 
floundering in political quagmires — who hoped for a monarchy 
to set it again on its feet.^^ 

The Insurgent movement held the attention of the entire 
nation. It was feared that sinister forces were magnifying 
the grievances and playing upon the passions of the people. 
There were many who believed the disturbances In Massa- 
chusetts (and elsewhere In New England) were encouraged 
by English emissaries and tory agents, and feared that their 
growth might disrupt the republic before it was out of Its 
swaddling clothes. 

This dangerous possibility was felt in the breasts of those 
highest in the land. "What is the cause of all these commo- 
tions?" asked Washington in a letter to Colonel Humphreys. 
"Do they proceed from licentiousness, British Influence dis- 
seminated by the tories, or real grievances which admit of 
redress?" 2^ 

And Humphreys replied, "From all the information I have 
been able to obtain ... I should attribute them to all the 
three causes which you have suggested." ^^ 

°^ Knox to Washington, October 23, 1786. — Brooks, Henry Knox, 195; Drake, Henry 
Knox, 92. 

"' Minot, History of the Insurrections in Massachusetts, First edition, 62—63 ! Second 
edition, 61-62. 

■* October 22, 1786. — Ford, Writings of Washington, XI, 77, note. 

^''Marshall, Life of Washington, First American edition, V, 113— 114 (different page 
numbers in other editions). 



290 ARTEMAS WARD [A^e 58-59 

As the weeks passed, Washington's suspicions increased. 
He declared that he felt no doubt that Great Britain was 
"sowing the seeds of jealousy and discontent among the va- 
rious tribes of Indians on our frontiers" and that she would 
"improve every opportunity to foment the spirit of turbulence 
within the bowels of the United States," ^^ 

Ward held the same opinion, A few days after the closing 
of the Worcester Court of Common Pleas he had written to 
Governor Bowdoin his belief that the disturbances in Hamp- 
shire and Worcester did not originate in those counties but 
were "the effects of British emissaries . . . employed , . . 
to stimulate the unwary to acts of disorder & violence, [and] 
to poison the minds of others with unreasonable jealousies of 
their rulers — suggesting they are oppressed by them un- 
necessarily." 

"It is my opinion," he continued, "the plan is deeper laid 
than many are aware of. Why such care in a British Gov- 
ernor to strengthen the out Posts with such dispatch? Have 
we not great reason to suppose they are waiting for an op- 
portunity to take advantage of these States who are at this 
time as inattentive to their real interest as the beasts that 
perish, "2^ 

Some modern writers have minimized the dangers of the 
uprising, but that is to disregard or contradict the observa- 
tion and impressions of the best informed of the men who 
lived through the period. 

Worcester was on November 21 again occupied by in- 
surgents — coming from Princeton, Hubbardston, Shrewsbury, 
and other adjacent towns to prevent the adjourned sitting of 
the Court of General Sessions. 

As the government had made no move to back its 
legislation with force, they easily accomplished their purpose. 

The capital was, indeed, troubled by reports that the insur- 

^" To Knox, December 26, 1786. — Ford, Writings of Washington, XI, 106. 
"Original letter, September 12, 1786, Charles Roberts Autograph Letter Collection of 
Ilaverfnrd College. 



1786'] SHAYS' REBELLION 291 

gents, growing In confidence and strength, planned a march 
eastward to stop the sitting of the Court of Common Pleas 
In Cambridge on November 28 — this to be followed by a 
demonstration in Boston and the coercion of the General 
Court itself. 

On the twenty-third an insurgent convention, held in 
Worcester, published an address calling upon the people to 
stand together and asserting their right to "examine, censure, 
and condemn the conduct of their rulers," adding that, as 
many of the rulers of Massachusetts had been "born to afflu- 
ence," and "perhaps the whole In easy circumstances," they 
were not "under advantages of feeling for the less wealthy." 

The address deprecated the closing of the courts as unwise 
policy, but this admonition was not taken seriously, for In the 
following week Insurgents from Hampshire and Worcester 
counties gathered to prevent the opening of the Court of 
Common Pleas at Worcester on December 5. 

Their first rendezvous was at Shrewsbury, and their head- 
quarters "in the large yard in front of the Baldwin Tavern 
directly opposite Judge Ward's house." ^^ Later, they cen- 
tered at other towns nearby. 

General Warner issued orders to the militia of his division 
to hold themselves in readiness to march to Worcester, but 
he found insurgent sympathy so wide-spread that he dis- 
patched an express to Bowdoin warning him that It might be 
impossible to muster enough loyal Worcester County militia 
to be effective, and that to ensure the protection of the court 
It would "be necessary to send on a formidable force from 
the Lower Counties and Perhaps some Pieces of Artillery, as 
I am credibly Informed the Insurgents have obtained 
some." 29 

Bowdoin immediately gave Warner's message to the Coun- 
cil, but it voted against aiding him with militiamen from the 

^^ Elizabeth Ward, Old Times in Shrewsbury, 185. It was in this house, before it 
became the Baldwin Tavern, that Ward had been brought up (as noted also on page 4). 
^December I, 1786. — Original letter, Massachusetts Archives, CLXXXIX, 46. 



292 ARTEMAS WARD l^^e sg 

eastern counties. The councilors feared to detach any men 
that might be needed for the defense of the capital. 

Bowdoin returned word to Warner that no reinforcements 
could be sent, but urged him — and also the sheriff of the 
county — to every means to prevent interference. 

On the same day (December 2) he wrote warning Ward 
that reports had been received In Boston that the insurgent 
chiefs had decided, "in consultation this or last week, that in 
case Government took up any of them, they would retaliate 
on the friends of Government — And that you & Judge Gill 
were agreed on."^*^ 

Overnight, the governor and Council decided against any 
attempt to meet the issue in Worcester. On the third (Sun- 
day) Bowdoin dispatched another express, countermanding 
Warner's orders and notifying the judges that the Council 
advised adjournment to January 23 if they should find them- 
selves unable to sit without molestation. 

That same evening a party of insurgents entered Worces- 
ter and took possession of the court-house, their ranks being 
strengthened during the night and the day following by the 
arrival of numerous reinforcements. 

A violent snowstorm set in Monday evening and raged all 
next day, but the insurgents continued to gather, numbering 
five or six hundred by the time appointed for the opening 
of the court. 

To have attempted to transact court business would have 
brought fresh indignities upon the judiciary, but Ward and 
Samuel Baker — the only two of the four judges who had ar- 
rived — went through the formality of opening court^^ and 
then adjourned it by proclamation^^ to January 23. 

""Original letter (by John Avery, Jr.), Artemas Ward MSS. 

" As the United States Arms tavern was in the possession of the insurgents, court 
was this time opened in the Sun Tavern. The Sun, also known as "Mower's Tavern," 
had prior to the Revolution been the residence of the loyalist judge John Chandler. It 
was in 1818 replaced by a new building, known first as the Worcester Hotel, or Hovey's, 
and later as the United States Hotel. Its site (the southeast corner of Main and 
M^echanic streets) has for many years been covered by the Walker Building. 

" The original is among the Artcnias fFard MSS. 



1786] SHAYS' REBELLION 293 

The judges held the Council's advice to adjourn if oppo- 
sition was offered to their sitting, but they were able to avoid 
public acknowledgment of this new interruption of justice by 
having another reason for adjournment in the absence of the 
two judges who had been "providentially detained." 

Ward remained in Worcester Tuesday night, virtually a 
prisoner, for the insurgents placed a guard around the house 
where he was staying, but he was permitted to return to 
Shrewsbury the following day. 

Meantime, an insurgent council of war declared for a 
march on Boston to liberate insurgent prisoners as soon as a 
large enough force had collected. 

In anticipation of such a move, the governor and Council 
prepared for the defense of the capital — "guards were 
mounted at the prison, and at the entrances of the town; and 
all things seemed to carry the shew of a garrison." Outside 
the town, Major-General Brooks held "the Middlesex mili- 
tia contiguous to the road, in readiness for action." ^^ 

Wednesday morning the insurgents received additional re- 
inforcements and during the day paraded to meet Shays, who 
came in from Hampshire County with about 350 men. This 
was Shays' highest moment. His column of a full thousand 
men^^ made an imposing appearance marching through the 
streets. "The companies included many who had learned 
their tactics from Steuben, and served an apprenticeship of 
discipline in the ranks of the revolution : war worn veterans, 
who in a good cause, would have been invincible. The pine 
tuft supplied the place of plume in their hats. Shays, with 
his aid, mounted on white horses, led the van. They displayed 
into line before the Court House, where they were reviewed 
and inspected." 

The possession of the town was complete, and Shays took 
every precaution against surprise. "Chains of sentinels were 

'^ Minot, History of the Insurrections in Massachusetts, First edition, 88, 87; Second 
edition, 87, 86. Council Records, December 7, 1786. 

^* JForccster Magazine, first week in December, 1 786, says "about 800," — but the 
next week's continuation of the account has it as 1000. 



294 ARTEMAS WARD [^^^ 5P 

stretched along the streets; planted in every avenue of ap- 
proach, and on the neighboring hills, examining all who 
passed. "^^ 

Fortunately for Massachusetts the excessively severe 
weather made the roads so nearly impassable that the full 
insurgent strength could not gather. Short by many hundreds 
of their expected numbers and unable to bring in sufficient 
supplies over the snow-choked roads, the plan for a descent 
upon Boston faded to impossibility. Nor even could Shays 
subsist his men in Worcester except by levying on the in- 
habitants — which (to his credit be it told) he did not attempt 
— so on December 7 he marched a large detachment out of 
the town and two days later the remainder were temporarily 
disbanded. 

On December 14 Bowdoin wrote to Ward advising that 
the Council would meet on the twentieth, "when the means of 
effectually suppressing the insurgents will be taken into serious 
consideration," and asking his suggestions and advice. His 
letter in facsimile is on the page opposite. 

Ward, replying, estimated 1500 as the strength that the 
insurgents would be able to muster at Worcester for the next 
court sitting — that of the Court of Common Pleas, January 23 
— and he strongly advocated the government's putting Into 
the field a "decided superiority" of numbers as "the most 
likely way to prevent the shedding of blood." He advised 
that a force double that of the insurgents be drawn from the 
"lower counties" — this would "serve as a stimulus to the 
militia in this county to turn out In support of Government," 
and would "convince the insurgents that they are not the 
people, as they affect to call themselves." ^^ 

On December 26 Shays' men closed the Springfield Courts 
of Common Pleas and General Sessions. The news reached 
Boston the following Sunday, and coupled with it was word 

"Lincoln, History of Worcester, Mass., First edition, 146; 1862 edition, 127. 
^"Bowdoin and Temple Papers, II, 118. — Massachusetts Historical Society Collections, 
7th, VI. 












^^ /C^.^f ^1 .:''<' '.,^ t^_ 



-^- :.,....;!.:. - -^ 












-^ 









From the original (7J-8 X 125-^) in the Artemai Ward ^1/SS. 

GOVERNOR BOWDOIN'S LETTER ASKING WARD'S ADVICE 
ON THE SUPPRESSION OF SHAYS' REBELLION 



IJ86-I78^^, SHAYS' REBELLION 295 

that the insurgents were already preparing to prevent the 
sitting of the Worcester court. 

The Council was at last aroused to the necessity of effective 
action. On January 4, acting on Ward's advice, an army of 
4400 men was ordered raised, and its command was entrusted 
to General Benjamin Lincoln. 3200 men were to form the 
army with which Lincoln was to march to Worcester to up- 
hold the court; 1200 were to rendezvous at Springfield. 
There was no money in the treasury to supply the troops, but 
a sufficient fund was quickly raised by loans from private 
citizens. 

On January 12 Ward wrote to Bowdoin telling of a con- 
ference of insurgent officers to be held at Rutland on January 
16, and suggested an attempt "to cast the net over them."^''' 
Bowdoin passed the letter on to Lincoln, but the latter's prepa- 
rations were not sufficiently advanced to make the plan 
feasible. 

Lincoln and his troops reached Worcester on January 22 
and were joined there by loyal militia units. They encoun- 
tered no opposition and the court sat uninterruptedly, for the 
insurgents had shifted their aim and were gathering their 
forces for an attempt on the continental arsenal at Spring- 
field, planning to strike for its capture before the main gov- 
ernment army could be thrown into the scale against them. 

The insurgents had suffered from the lack not only of com- 
petent leaders, but also of firearms and ammunition. Pos- 
session of the arsenal would greatly increase both their mili- 
tary strength and their political power. 

The court completed its labors on Thursday, January 25. 
On the same day. Shays attempted a descent on the arsenal. 
He was easily repulsed, but General Shepard was nevertheless 
much perturbed by the strength of the insurgent bodies en- 
camped around him. He feared for the safety both of the 
arsenal and of Springfield itself, and he sent expresses to 

^''Worcester, Original Papers, III, 14, American Antiquarian Society. 



296 ARTEMAS WARD [Age 59 

Worcester calling for help. Lincoln immediately responded, 
throwing one regiment of foot and a small detachment of 
cavalry into the arsenal camp on the night of the twenty- 
sixth,^^ and following them next morning with his full 
command. 

Ward, meanwhile, returned to Shrewsbury and thence to 
Boston. 

The opening of the General Court had been scheduled for 
January 31 and Ward was present on that day, but it was 
February 3 before a quorum gathered. 

Governor Bowdoin's opening speech urged vigorous action 
to restore order. And both branches of the legislature 
promptly responded. 

"The plans for the session seem to have been prearranged 
by some guiding minds; for there was a concert of action 
between the two branches as well as with the Governor, un- 
known since the outbreak. To Bowdoin's patriotic address, 
urging a determined suppression of the rebellion, the Senate 
[February 4] replied by the hand of Samuel Adams, declar- 
ing a rebellion to exist, and promising to support him in all 
his measures to restore the supremacy of the law. The House 
immediately concurred."^® 

The very day that a state of rebellion was thus declared, 
the rebellion received its death blow. 

The insurgents had retreated as Lincoln advanced upon 
them after reaching Springfield, and soon after had come 
their dispersal — and the breaking of the backbone of the in- 
surrection — at Petersham on February 4, following Lincoln's 
famous pursuit in a forced march of thirty miles through a 
driving snow-storm. 

Small bodies of insurgents continued in arms for a while, 
essaying guerilla tactics, but they were for the most part 
of the element lawless by nature. Among the people gener- 

=' Lincoln to Washington, February 22, 1787, Sparks MSS., LVII, f. 10, Harvard 
College Library. 

'" Wells, Life of Samuel Adams, III, 236. 



775/] SHAYS' REBELLION 297 

ally, there was little appetite left for armed protest. "Shays' 
Rebellion" was no longer a menace to the Institutions of the 
commonwealth. 

The strength of the insurgency had, even at its height, 
rested much less in the half-armed forces which represented 
it on the march or in the field than in their background of a 
public sentiment aflame with anger at the legal pitfalls beset- 
ting scores of communities. And public sentiment, per- 
ceiving the futility of Insurrection, had withdrawn its sup- 
port. Hundreds of the men whom circumstances had swept 
from the well-traveled highway of political protest into the 
whirlpool of rebellion, were at heart fully loyal to both their 
state and the Confederacy, and they rejoiced when the re- 
bellion subsided and their feet were once again on solid 
ground — though they were perhaps not regretful of their 
sudden plunge if it should have opened the eyes of their 
fellows to the needs and grievances of so many of the people 
of the state. 

And very soon — so soon indeed that the embers of the in- 
surrection were barely cold — one sees dissolve the worst fea- 
tures of the economic and legal tangle which had imperiled 
the commonwealth. No great constitutional change took 
place, but several causes united to set its life currents coursing 
more healthfully. Judges held creditors to some degree in 
check; and creditors in general had been shocked Into a more 
careful consideration. Further, in the following November 
the General Court struck the shackles from propertyless debt- 
ors by a new law which permitted them to step out of the 
gloom of the jails Into the sunshine of freedom. The cred- 
itor could still pursue without restriction for any property 
that his debtor might have or might acquire, but he could 
no longer condemn him indefinitely to the dungeon. 

Then, too, commerce found new outlets — and regained 
some old ones — and, before long, prosperity, In at least toler- 
able measure, flowed again through the highways, helping 
to wipe out both old debts and old grievances. 



298 ARTEMAS WARD [Age 59 

In national affairs, also, the rebellion had served a purpose 
as a warning that could not be ignored by any thoughtful 
man. Despite their handicaps, the insurgents had shaken 
the government of one of the strongest states in the Con- 
federacy. And, as Washington testifies, there were "com- 
bustibles in every state, which a spark might set fire to.""**^ 

If a new and greater conflagration should break out, where 
could be found the power to quench the ^mes? There could 
be little reliance in a national government so weak that — 
even while recording its belief that its aid was necessary for 
the support of the government of Massachusetts in order to 
save the United States from "the calamities of a civil war" — 
it confessed itself afraid of the "perilous step" of arming 
its ex-soldiers had it not received assurances that "the 
money holders in the state of Massachusetts and the other 
states" would fill the loans to pay the soldiers' wages.^^ It 
was high time for an abatement of personal jealousies and 
grudges, of personal absorption in pursuit of gain, of state 
rivalries and selfishness. Time too for statesmen, hard set 
on political theories, to learn to bend or shape them to meet 
the needs of the nation. 

Old objections to a change in the form of national govern- 
ment had weakened under the pressure, and every state 
but Rhode Island was represented in the Constitutional 
Convention which on September 17, 1787, after four months' 
labor and debate, adopted the present Constitution of the 
United States and submitted it for ratification. 

Then followed a series of stirring — frequently bitter — fac- 
tional fights within the states. Victory was won by the advo- 
cates of the constitution, and the young republic thus took 
another and a firm step forward on the road to its future 
greatness. It accepted the strong national government of 
the "Federalists" instead of the League of States of which 
the "Anti-Federalists" were enamored. 

*" To Knox, December 26, 1786. — Ford, TFr'itings of TFashhigton, XI, 104. 
*^ Secret Journals of the Congress of the Confederation, Domcstick Affairs, October 21, 
1786, I, 268-270 (1821). 



z/^;] SHAYS' REBELLION 299 

There was much opposition in Massachusetts to the re- 
strictions and sacrifices of state sovereignty which the Con- 
stitution embodied — the Worcester County delegates voted 
forty-three for rejection and only seven for acceptance — but 
public opinion gradually veered toward it and Massachusetts 
became the stronghold of the "Federal" party. 

With that change of heart came Ward's vindication among 
his townsmen. It had been against an overwhelming major- 
ity that he had maintained his stand for the political integrity 
of the commonwealth, but in after years there were many 
who contritely asked his pardon for the abuse they had 
poured on him for refusing to join with them In revolt.^^ 

And the clemency extended to the insurgents, both leaders 
and rank and file, must have been satisfactory even to 
Thomas Jefferson, who had expressed hope that no severity 
would be exercised in punishment. Jefferson believed that an 
occasional spirit of revolt was beneficial — even if wrongly 
directed, it was better than none at all! "I like a little rebel- 
lion now and then," he declared. "It is like a storm In the 
atmosphere."''^ 

*^ Silvanus Billings petition, Henry Baldwin acknowledgment, etc. — Artcmas Ward 
MSS. 

"To Abigail Adams, February 22, 17S7. — Paul Leicester Ford, IFrlt'ings of Thomas 
Jefferson, IV, 370. 



CHAPTER XV 

1 7 87-1 8 00: Age 59-72 

After Shays' Rebellion to 1800. General Ward as a "Federalist" in 
the Second and Third United States Congresses. His political 
views. The break with Samuel Adams. His death. 

DURING the legislative year commencing May 30, 1787, 
Ward took no part in the Massachusetts government, 
but on June 4, 1788, he was elected one of the nine councilors 
provided by the new state constitution to advise and assist 
the governor. 

In December of the same year he was a candidate to rep- 
resent the Worcester district In the first United States con- 
gress under the new national constitution. He was handi- 
capped by the "Insurgent" vote — which was not yet fully 
reconciled to the part he had taken In opposing the Shays 
movement — and he ran third In a hotly contested election. 
The two leading contestants were Colonel Jonathan Grout 
and Timothy Paine. On the third vote Grout was elected.^ 

^ Rice, The Worcester District in Congress, 4. — "Grout, although a lawyer, had sym- 
pathized with the insurgents, during the Shays Rebellion, and was known as a pro- 
nounced Antifederalist. Paine had been a tory of the mild stripe in the Revolution but 
had readily regained the favor of the community in which he lived by his cheerful 
acquiescence in the new order. He was a man of wealth and influence, and was sup- 
ported by the Federalists. 

"Three trials were necessary before a choice was effected. [On the first. Grout re- 
ceived a plurality.] On the second Paine received a plurality. . . . Artemas Ward 
appearing as a candidate of some strength, and drawing from both sides. [This is in- 
accurate, as the Ward vote was approximately the same on each ballot — and was a 
little higher on the first than on the second and third.] These failures prolonged the 
contest through the winter, with increasing excitement and ill feeling. The merits and 
demerits of the candidates were set forth with earnestness in the public print, and dis- 
cussed in private with acrimony. Paine was denounced as a tory, an aristocrat, and an 
enemy to the common people. The objections to Grout were, that in education and 
ability he was Paine's inferior, and that he had large property interests in Vermont and 
New Hampshire. A third attempt on the 2d of March, 1789, resulted in Grout's elec- 
tion by a small majority." 

300 



IJ87-I7gI^, AS A FEDERALIST 301 

Time was, however, correcting the vision of the men of 
Shrewsbury and in the following spring (1789) they elected 
Ward as Moderator — the chief office of the township; and 
thereafter twice reelected him. 

It was in the fall of the same year that Washington as the 
first President of the United States visited New England: 
everywhere to be received with the highest respect and great- 
est acclaim. He arrived in Worcester on the morning of 
October 23, escorted into the town by a party of prominent 
citizens. He breakfasted at the United States Arms and 
then set out again on the road for Boston, passing Ward's 
house on his way; but Ward was not there to greet him, nor 
had he taken any part in the Worcester reception — so deep- 
seated and lasting had proved the estrangement of the two 
men. 

Ward spent the greater part of 1789 and 1790 in semi- 
retirement on his Shrewsbury farm, but in the fall of the 
latter year he was again a candidate to represent the Worces- 
ter district in the United States House of Representatives, 
and again the election was close and hotly contested. 

Grout ran for reelection, and the fight this time was be- 
tween him and Ward, a third candidate running well behind 
both. 

On the first vote (October 4) neither Ward nor Grout 
obtained the requisite number (1123) of votes: Ward re- 
ceiving 798 and Grout 800. In the second contest, Novem- 
ber 26, Ward made the goal, his vote running up to 1248, 
and Grout's reaching only 1081. 

Ward set out for Philadelphia in the following October 
(1791), traveling this time by stage coach instead of on 
horseback as eleven years earlier he had ridden to the same 
town to attend the Continental Congress. He arrived Oc- 
tober 22,^ two days before the opening of the first session of 

^Philadelphia, October 22: " . . . Artemas Ward, Representative in Congress from 
Massachusetts, is arrived in this city. To that state and to this officer, American liberty is 
particularly indebted. In that gloomy year, viz 1775, when Boston was in the pos- 



302 ARTEMAS WARD [J^e 63 

the Second Congress. And he was equally punctual at the 
other three sessions of his two terms. 

The United States Congress then was a small assemblage 
compared with that of today. The total enrolment of Rep- 
resentatives in the Second Congress was only sixty-nine; and 
only thirty-eight were present when it was called to order. 

Ward aligned himself with the "Federalists" (or "Nation- 
alists," as they had better been called), who supported Wash- 
ington and Alexander Hamilton and John Adams in their 
stand for a strong central government exercising the fullest 
possible power that could be assumed under the Constitution; 
and many of whom inclined toward a social system akin to 
that of England. Of opposing views were the "Anti-Federal- 
ists" : those of states' rights and individualistic views, who ob- 
jected to the national government's reaching out for power 
and authority, and who looked askance at the almost regal 
ceremonials of Washington's administration. Sectionalism 
and variance of agrarian and commercial interests also pro- 
vided reasons for cleavage.^ 

Political parties did not in those first years attain strong 
cohesion, but the outstanding testimony of the recorded 
votes of the House of Representatives of the Second Con- 
gress is that New England, led by Massachusetts, supported 
Washington's administration in nearly every important vote, 
and that the South, led by Virginia, opposed it; that New 

session of a regular and well appointed British force, inimical to liberty, before the other 
colonies had fully taken the alarm, the sons of Massachusetts dared to assert their rights, 
and this gentleman was appointed by them to conduct their enterprises. To have men- 
tioned resistance in the field, would have been acknowledged a proof of temerity, in some 
parts, at the period to which we allude. But Ward and his followers thought and acted 
otherwise. Scantily supplied with arms and ammunition, they kept in awe the flower 
of the British troops. To him therefore and to them the praise of firmness and conduct 
are due — They gallantly began to effect that revolution, which was afterwards gloriously 
completed by confederated America, under the auspices of a Washington, to whom 
the patriotick Ward, in obedience to Congress, resigned the command of the army, 
and continued to act as first Major General." — Massachusetts Spy, November 3, 1791. 
" The issue which gave rise to the party names of "Federalist" and "Anti-Federalist" 
had been banished by the acceptance of the constitution, but the names continued with 
changed, and changing, significance as party labels. 



lygi] AS A FEDERALIST 303 

England was generally Federal, and that the South was 
generally Anti-Federal.^ 

Ward had full confidence in the honesty and intelligence 
of the people and their ability to decide correctly on subjects 
familiar to them, but during the years of the Revolutionary 
War, and those succeeding it, he had witnessed so many in- 
stances of the populace acting upon subjects of which it had 
little understanding that he felt that the public weal was best 
served by a government with balance-wheels set beyond its 
direct control. 

As early as March 13, 1781, he had written to Samuel 
Osgood: "You say that which comports with the general sen- 
timents of the people is political justice. If you mean to have 
them first well informed I shall not differ much about the 
matter; but if you mean the general sentiment of the people 
made up without due consideration I must beg leave to 
dissent."^ Again, two years later (April 23, 1783), to Gen- 
eral Lincoln: "When I see the methods that are taken by some 
& the inattention of others, to their Rights and Priviledges, I 
am almost ready to say, that the choice of the first magistrate 
[i.e., the choice of the governor of the state] ought by no 
means, be committed to the People at large. I apprehend the 
inattention of the people is so great that there is danger of 
their being undone before they are aware of it."*^ 

Thus feeling and believing. Ward was a whole-souled Fed- 
eralist. He was proud to belong to the party whose strong 
constructive work is the most remarkable feature of the first 
years under the United States Constitution. The Federal 
policies were to him the true Nezv England Politics (that was 
his favorite way of referring to them), as Congregationalism 

■' An interesting taliulation of a number of the votes of the first four United States 
congresses is given in Libby's "Political Factions in Washington's Administration," Quar- 
terly Journal of the University of North Dakota, III, 293— 3 iS. I cannot, though, agree 
with the deductions that Professor Libby draws. An important inaccuracy in the votes 
of the Third Congress, Table VI, is corrected on page 311, note 17, of this chapter. 

° MS. draft in the possession (1921) of Ward Dix Kerlin, Camden, N. J. 

' Original letter, Fogg Collection, Maine Historical Society. 



304 ARTEMAS WARD [Age 63-64 

was to him the New England Religion. As such he upheld 
them both in his adjurations to his sons/ 

Ward was an appointee on numerous military committees. 
Among them — only eight days after his first attendance — was 
one (November i, 1791) to prepare and bring in a bill for 
the establishment of a militia, and competent magazines, ar- 
senals, and fortifications.^ 

Faithful attention to duty marked him as in his younger 
days. On January 23, 1792, he notes, "I have had an ill turn 
for one day whereby I was prevented from attending my duty 
in Congress" ; but he proudly adds, "saving that, I have not 
been absent one hour."^ 

His body was, however, weaker than his. will, for the fol- 
lowing month (February 18) he was obliged to write that he 
had been prevented from attending his "duty in Congress 
about ten days by reason of Indisposition. I was first taken 
with the Gravel. As soon as I had got well of that difiiculty, 
I was taken with the Gout in my feet. Have been much ex- 
ercised with pain in them. They are now become quite easy 
but much swollen. I am not able to put on my shoes. I hope 
by the Blessing of a kind Providence in a few days to be able 
to attend Congress again."® 

Four days later (February 22) he wrote, "I am still de- 
tained from attending Congress on account of the gout. I 

'' To his youngest son, Henry Dana, then living in Orangeburgh, S. C, Ward wrote, 
February 25, 1795, "I wish to have you obtain the esteem of the people among whom 
you dwell ; but to obtain that, I would not have you renounce the New-England Politics 
nor Religion" ; and again on March 3 of the same year, "I hope you will endeavor to 
get the good will of the people among whom you reside, but in order to obtain that I 
hope you will not sacrifice your Political principles, nor your religion, as too many have 
done. A steady firm adherence to right principles is more likely to raise a man in 
the opinion of others than shifting & turning about like a wethercock with every breth of 
wind." The originals of both these letters are in the possession (1921) of Maria 
Whittelsey Norris, Grand Rapids, Mich. 

* The membership of the committee is not given in the generally consulted "Annals of 
Congress" (Gales and Seaton, Debates and Proceedings In the Congress of the United 
States, 1849), but it may be found in the first (1792) edition of the House Journal, the 
Gales and Seaton reprint of 1826, and (incorrectly dated October 31) in [John Agg's] 
History of Congress exhibiting a classification of the proceedings . . . the first term 
of the Administration of General Washington, 489. 

• To his son, Thomas Walter Ward. — Original letters, Artemas Ward MSS. 



ijgi-ijg2-\ AS A FEDERALIST 30S 

have but little pain, but my left foot, ankle & small of my 
leg is very much swollen. I can't get on my shoe, and the 
Streats are so damp & wet that It's not safe to go out unless 
I could wear my shoe. Hope in a short time to be able to 
attend my duty in Congress."^ 

One consolation he found In his sickness was that It af- 
forded him an excuse for not taking part in the celebration 
of Washington's birthday. "This day" (February 22), he 
wrote, "is the President's birthday & there Is a mighty fuss 
in this City on that account. Being unwell I am excused from 
taking any part therein, & that gives me no pain, but rather 
pleasure." 

Ward supported many Washington policies, but he never 
attained a personal liking for the Virginian. 

His Interest in the welfare of his constituents is ever pres- 
ent. He writes (in his letter of January 23, already quoted) , 
"there are matters before Congress of very great importance, 
such as the Indian war,^*^ representation in Congress whether 
one for every thirty thousand, &c, militia law &c. I wish 
they may all be determined In such manner as will be most 
for the benefit of the people at large." 

He dwelt (February 22) on the danger of too many Rep- 
resentatives: "I fear the next choice of Representatives for 
Congress will give too many members for the benefit of the 
people at large; Congress having determined there shall be 
one for every thirty thousand persons in the United States, 
so that Massachusetts will have fifteen members instead of 
eight. It will make the expence of Government much greater 
and the business not done any better, and I think the people 
be in more danger of having their Rights incroached upon; 
for an Individual in a large assembly will not look upon him- 
self so much accountable to his constituents for what is done, 

^ See note 9 on preceding page. 

^'' The intermittent warfare with the Iitdians — chiefly at this period in western Ohio 
and Indiana (both Indiana and Ohio then being part of the Northwest Territory) — had 
temporarily assumed a serious aspect by the complete rout of St. Clair's force on 
November 4, 1791. 



3o6 ARTEMAS WARD [Age 64-65 

— he will hide himself in the multitude and say I was not pres- 
ent when this & that thing was transacted. I wish many 
things were different from what they are at present." 

He never held a high opinion of the chronic speechmaker. 
On March i he writes: "There is more business that ought 
to be done before we rise, than we have hitherto done. There 
are so many that have so high a favor for speechafying that 
they hinder business amasingly, and one half of it is nothing 
to the purpose. If there were fewer speakers & more inde- 
pendent men we should do much better." 

He found the life in Philadelphia "Very unpleasant and 
irksome," and he declared that he wished "never to be re- 
elected."" 

March 10, there came up a resolution which reads inter- 
estingly in the light of the startling events which followed: 

"Resolved, That this House hath received, with sentiments 
of high satisfaction, the notification of the King of the French, 
of his acceptance of the Constitution presented to him in the 
name of the Nation: And that the President of the United 
States be requested, in his answer to the said notification, to 
express the sincere participation of the House in the interests 
of the French Nation, on this great and important event; 

"And their wish, that the wisdom and magnanimity dis- 
played in the formation and acceptance of the Constitution, 
may be rewarded by the most perfect attainment of its object, 
the permanent happiness of so great a people." 

Ward voted for the first section, but against the second. 
He perhaps did not believe in the "magnanimity" of Louis 
XVI, and he saw further than some of his colleagues, for it 
was only five months later that Louis fled to the Assembly 
for protection, and a mob sacked the Tuileries — young Cap- 
tain Napoleon Bonaparte being an interested observer; and 
it was less than a year before he was condemned to the guil- 
lotine for "conspiracy against the liberty of the nation and 
criminal attacks upon the safety of the state." 

" To Thomas Walter Ward. — Original letter, Artemas Ward MSS. 



77^2] AS A FEDERALIST 307 

A few weeks after the House vote on the congratulatory 
resolutions to Louis XVI, Congress (May 8) adjourned to 
November 5, and Ward returned to Shrewsbury. 

The journey to and from Philadelphia every year by stage 
over the broken, eroded route of the eighteenth century was 
a severe strain upon a man of his age and condition. Of 
that to the second session of the Second Congress he wrote 
(November 13), "I arrived at this place on the first instant 
much unwell by the fatiguing journey I had," and again, on 
December 28, "I have been unwell a great part of the time 
I have been here, ... I have at times been exercised with 
excrutiating pain. That is now abated and I hope through 
Divine goodness I may enjoy better health. "^^ 

In his letter of November 13, he spoke of the hope of ter- 
minating the Indian war, "which has cost us millions of dol- 
lars." The English government was suspected of aiding the 
Indians with supplies and ammunition, but English traders 
had become "sick of the war, because the Indians have noth- 
ing to trade with ; they having spent so much time in Counsels 
&war." 

In his letter of December 28, he approvingly noted the 
reelection of John Adams as Vice-President "by a much 
greater majority than he was first chosen by, to the great 
mortification of those who have been endeavouring to prevent 
his being chosen." Washington had again been unanimously 
elected President. 

Ward rejoiced also at the victories of the French revo- 
lutionists. "I congratulate you," he wrote, "on the success 
of the French armes against the combined Armies. They 
have drove them out of France, killed and taken many thou- 
sands of them with large quantities of Ordnance & Stores and 
were pursuing them in the beginning of October last, which 
is the latest accounts we have from France." 

He added the hope that "the French may have wisdom to 
make a right improvement of the advantage they have ob- 

" To Thomas Walter Ward. — Original letters, Artemas TVard MSS. 



3o8 ARTEMAS WARD [Affe 63 

tained over their enemies," — for on November 13 he had 
noted "from France they appear to be in a very disagreeable 
situation, not knowing how to use their rights & turn their 
rage against their best friends." 

But no one could yet foresee the distortions and deformi- 
ties which the European turmoil was to breed in the American 
body politic 1 

Ward had declared himself as opposed to a second term, 
but he was nevertheless reelected — this time on the first vote 
and by a handsome majority — to the Third Congress. 

The Second Congress closed on March 2, 1793, and the 
Third Congress did not meet until December 2. 

Between those two dates lies a spectacularly feverish pe- 
riod of American history, for domestic divergencies split 
wide open upon the rock of the French Revolution. The 
upheaval in France had shaken the entire civilized world and 
the waves rolled high upon the American shore, all but wreck- 
ing the government with the extreme violence of the emotions 
it roused. 

France, in her desperate defiance of the monarchical powers 
of Europe, claimed the aid of the United States, and thou- 
sands of Americans — blind to, or disregarding, the vul- 
nerability of their own so newly established country — were 
eagerly willing that she should respond immediately and in 
full to the French demands upon her. 

By the early summer, sympathy with the French revolution- 
ists had mounted to the point of passion. "Democratic So- 
cieties," modeled on the Jacobins Club of Paris, were organ- 
ized by the extreme "French Party" of the Democratic-Re- 
publicans — a new name for the Anti-Federalists. Politics 
boiled as a veritable orgy of factional discord, dissension, and 
abuse. 

America's clash would be with England — and this added 
zest Instead of exciting caution, for the old Revolutionary an- 
tagonism, continued and nursed by years of unsettled griev- 
ances, had been heightened by the depredations on American 



ijgz-ijgs'l AS A FEDERALIST 309 

merchantmen which followed England's entry into the Euro- 
pean conflict. "Ten thousand people in the streets of Phila- 
delphia, day after day, threatened to drag Washington out 
of his house, and effect a revolution in the government, or 
compel it to declare war in favor of the French revolution 
and against England." ^^ 

Washington held firm for neutrality. His stand drove the 
"French Party" to frenzy, but it saved — just barely saved — 
the country from being drawn into the European maelstrom. 

The swiftly moving current of events heightened differences 
of opinion and viewpoint, and strengthened new lines of de- 
marcation. Ward stood firm with Washington: sheerly op- 
posite to the sentiments of his old friend Samuel Adams. 
Ward and Samuel Adams had been drifting apart, and the 
acrimony over the American policy toward England and 
France severed the ties of a generation of intimate political 
fellowship. 

It was the same practical bent which had directed Ward's 
support of so many Federal measures that enlisted him also 
for neutrality. 

He was thoroughly imbued with the belief that self-gov- 
ernment is an inherent right, and his sympathies were with all 
those struggling for political freedom," but it was solely and 
specifically for the political liberty of his own province of 
Massachusetts, that, nineteen years before, he had risked life 
and honor by heading a revolutionary army — not for the gen- 
eral theory of human rights; and he was not willing to en- 
danger the triumphant result, an independent American re- 

" Works 0/ John Adams, X, 47. 

"On the news of the Polish triumphs of the spring and summer of 1794, he wrote 
(November 20, 1794) to his daughter Sarah and her husband, Elijah Brigham: "The 
King of Prussia does not succeed to his wisli against the Poles. He will it is hoped have 
more to do to suppress the insurrections in his own dominions than he will be able to 
accomplish. The spirit of liberty appears to be kindling In Europe, & will it is thought 
burst forth into a mighty flame. Then Emperors & Kings must hide their heads or lose 
them."— Original letter owned (1921) by the Reverend Francis E. Clark, Boston. 
(Poland's success was short-lived. She had been crushed at Maciejowice and Praga dur- 
ing the October preceding the date of Ward's letter.) 



3IO ARTEMAS WARD {Age 65-66 

public, on so unsatisfactory a hazard as a naval war with 
Great Britain: neither to aid revolutionary France, nor in 
retaliation for commercial losses, while there existed the 
possibility of peaceful adjustment. 

Samuel Adams, on the other hand, stood as the Massa- 
chusetts leader of the "Antis," the Democratic-Republicans or 
"Republicans" — of the sentiment of the Democratic Societies 
— or the "Jacobins," as they came to be known. 

The hectic excitement had subsided before the Third Con- 
gress met — the pro-French exhilaration had been damped both 
by the fearful epidemic of yellow fever which scourged the 
capital and by the political excesses of Citizen Genet, the 
French minister — but there remained the strong rancor 
against England, and early in 1794 the war spirit began 
mounting again as Congress and the country dwelt upon the 
ruin that English activities were bringing upon American 
maritime commerce. 

With the world in convulsion, a host of vessels — British, 
French, and Spanish — and both the English and French Ad- 
miralties — were preying upon American ships, ^^ but Eng- 
land's greater fleet gave her more numerous opportunities and 
much the largest list of victims. English warships and pri- 
vateers had fallen with overwhelming force upon hundreds of 
American vessels which had swarmed to the French West 
Indies to enjoy the advantage of the French Declaration 
placing American ships trading with French colonies on a full 
equality with French ships. ^'' Further, England's Impress- 
ment of American seamen whipped rage to a keener edge. 

The Democratic-Republicans now found allies among the 
Federalists, and both Congress and the country began to pre- 
pare for war. Resolutions passed for coast fortifications, and 
the purchase of artillery; plans were submitted for the rais- 
ing of an army; and citizens volunteered for work on the 
defenses. 

^'^ American State Papers, Foreign, I, 424. 

'"February 19, 1793, American State Papers, Foreign, I, 147. 



i793-n9i\ AS A FEDERALIST 311 

On April 7 there appeared again the favorite weapon 
of the Revolution — a resolution prohibiting commercial in- 
tercourse with British subjects- — and it found quick support in 
both House and Senate. 

The outlook was even more dangerous than it had been 
the preceding summer. War with England was being de- 
manded for the protection of American shipping; yet at that 
time war could only have meant its annihilation without the 
possibility of adequate reprisal. Above all else, the new 
United States required peace: time in which to develop its 
resources, and tranquillity so that its people might devote 
themselves to industry instead of to conflict. 

Measures for military preparation were justifiable — were 
indeed imperatively demanded by the world turmoil — but the 
situation was rapidly getting out of hand. 

Ward voted five times against the resolution prohibiting 
(or, as finally amended, severely restricting) commercial in- 
tercourse with British subjects, but united Republican and Fed- 
eral votes passed it in the House of Representatives. It re- 
ceived less than majority support on the second reading in 
the Senate, but only John Adams' vote as president of the 
Senate stopped Its passing to a third reading and possible 
acceptance. ^^ 

" Several histories incorrectly report, or convey an incorrect impression of, this incident 
of John Adams' vote. They state that the non-intercourse bill was "defeated in the 
Senate only by the casting vote of Vice-president Adams." — Avery, History of the United 
States, VII, 127; that "it was lost in the Senate only by the casting of the vote of the 
vice-president." — Bassett, The Federalist System, 125 (Volume XI of The American 
Nation), and so forth. The history of the bill in the Senate is, instead, briefly as follows: 
It was read the first time on April 25 and ordered to a second reading. It was read the 
second time on April 28 and put to a vote, but was rejected (the leading section by a vote 
of 14 nays against 11 yeas). Next came the vote on a motion to pass it for a third 
reading. The loss of the motion meant the loss of the bill ; to carry the motion would 
give another opportunity to endeavor to carry the bill. Its advocates mustered two addi- 
tional votes, and one of its opponents failed to vote, thus bringing about the tie of 13 
and 13 which was ended by John Adams. Under the circumstances one can only specu- 
late on the outcome if the bill had passed to a third reading. 

On page 303, note 4, this chapter, reference is made to a tabulation of votes of the first 
four United States congresses in Colby's "Political Factions in Washington's Administra- 
tion." One of the seemingly inevitable inaccuracies of such tabulations unfortunately 
reversed the record and significance of all the votes on this proposed "Non-intercourse 
with Great Britain." The Nays are listed as ^»/i-Administration, whereas the opposite 



312 ARTEMAS WARD \_Age 66 

The need for an understanding with England had become 
urgent, and Washington, with the consent of the Senate 
(obtained while the non-intercourse resolution was hatch- 
ing in the House), sent John Jay across the ocean to 
negotiate it. 

The year following was a most difficult and trying period. 
The harassing of American commerce was maintained to an 
extent which kept the country in hysterical anger. The 
Washington-John Adams Federalists held the helm steady 
awaiting the result of Jay's efforts in England, but under a 
continuous fire of insult from the "French Party" — which 
charged toryism and monarchical tendencies, subservience to 
England and English gold — ignoring the fact that France 
to the best of her lesser ability was almost equally culpable 
with her foe across the channel. 

In Ward's case at all events his stand was not suggested 
or influenced by any partiality toward England. Despite the 
excesses and atheism of the French revolutionists, their of- 
fenses against American commerce, and the political methods 
of their chief protagonists in this country, his sympathies were 
still for France in her conflict with England and her other 
enemies. He was strongly gratified by the defeat of the 
Duke of York and the other allied commanders at the battle 
of Tourcoing — "By accounts arrived here," he wrote, "the 
French still continue to conquer. The Duke of York has met 
with a sad rebuff. I wish he may meet with more of the 
like kind."i« 

The Democratic Societies nevertheless burrowed desper- 
ately in their efforts further to undermine the Federal Party, 
and Ward and the other strict Federalists were, using the 
words of an indignant writer in the Columbian Centinel (Oc- 
tober 25, 1794), "vilified worse than Robbers and even Dev- 

is the truth. The error involves between one-fifth and one-sixth of all the Third 
Congress votes considered. 

"November 20, 1794, to his daughter Sarah and her husband, Elijah Brigham. This 
letter is quoted also on page 309, note 14. 



779^] AS A FEDERALIST 313 

lis would be, and charged with crimes that Men are not 
capable of committing." 

The conditions were a severe strain upon the general, 
whose health was again poor, but he stood to his post despite 
the remonstrances of his family. Henry Dana, writing to 
his brother Thomas Walter (June 30, 1794), said he feared 
that their father would "be called to take his seat In Heaven 
at least four years sooner for his having holden on in 
Congress." ^^ 

The summer and fall were further perturbed by the 
"Whiskey Insurrection"-"^ In western Pennsylvania. The dis- 
turbances which bear that title arose from efforts to enforce 
the payment of United States excise fees and the resentment 
of the inhabitants at government interference with, and taxa- 
tion of, their whiskey distilling — an Industry of high impor- 
tance to them because it afforded the easiest and most profit- 
able method of marketing their surplus corn. Riotous de- 
fiances of government revenue officers mounted finally to the 
brink of armed rebellion, with several thousand men gather- 
ing in opposition to the government. Grave fears were 
aroused that their action might stimulate uprisings in other 
parts of the country; and that English agents were respon- 
sible for the spread of disaffection. 

The insurrection died down at the (intentionally) leisurely 
approach of a government army of 15,000 men, but it fed 
the flames of party animosity. Washington, in a formal 
message to Congress, November 19, charged the serious 
character of the disturbances to the Democratic Societies — 
referring to them by the peculiar euphemism of "certain self- 
created societies" ; and members of the Democratic Societies 
retorted that the insurrection had been grossly exaggerated 
by Alexander Hamilton — the most monarchical of the Fed- 

" Original letter, Artemas Ward MSS. 

^^ At the time also known as "Gallatin's Insurrection" because, until it verged to arms, 
opposition to the excise had been led by Senator Albert Gallatin, the young Swiss, already 
well on his way to political leadership and high government position. 



314 ARTEMAS WARD ^Age 66-67 

eralists — for the express purpose of staging an example and 
proof of the strength of the authority of the national gov- 
ernment. 

In the preparation by the House of Representatives of its 
address in response to the President's message, Ward voted 
in the affirmative to so amend a proposed clause as to speci- 
fically endorse Washington's charge against the "self-created 
societies." Thus amended, the clause read: "In tracing the 
origin and progress of the insurrection, we can entertain no 
doubt that certain self-created societies and combinations of 
men, careless of consequences and disregarding the truth, by 
disseminating suspicions, jealousies, and accusations of the 
government; have had all the agency you ascribe to them, in 
fomenting this daring outrage against social order and the 
authority of the laws." 

Ward voted against the majority which as an afterthought 
modified the charge by limiting it to "certain self-created so- 
cieties and combinations of men in the four Western coun- 
ties of Pennsylvania, and parts adjacent"; and again against 
the majority by his vote to restore most of the original signifi- 
cance of the clause by supplementing the limiting sentence with 
the words "countenanced by self-created societies elsewhere." 

On yet another vote the entire clause was defeated, and 
direct reference to "self-created societies" was avoided in the 
address adopted (November 28), but the record of the de- 
bate Is valuable as an Indication of the thought and trend 
of the times. -^ 

The Third Congress dissolved on March 3, 1795, and 
General Ward welcomed Its end as the self-appointed termina- 
tion of his political career. "This day the Session of Con- 

-' In the Senate, the Federalists defeated an effort to expunge reference to the "self- 
created societies" in its reply to the President's message. The Senate address declared 
that "our anxiety arising from the licentious and open resistance to the laws in the West- 
ern counties of Pennsylvania has been increased by the proceedings of certain self-created 
societies, relative to the laws and administration of the Government ; proceedings, in our 
apprehension, founded in political error, calculated, if not intended, to disorganize our 
Government, and which, by inspiring delusive hopes of support, have been influential in 
misleading our fellow citizens in the scene of insurrection." 



i794-i795\ AS A FEDERALIST 315 

gress closeth," he wrote to his son Henry Dana, "and this 
day finisheth my public political life. I shall now return to the 
private walks of life, and spend the few remaining days of my 
Pilgrimage ... in solitude; I have spent many of my days, 
I may say years, in the bustles of this transitory world; I hope 
not altogether unprofitably to my constituents, myself, & those 
that shall hereafter come on the stage of life."-- 

On his way home from Philadelphia he stopped off at 
Middletown, Conn., to visit his daughter Maria (Tracy). 
Of his journey he wrote thence, March 17, to his son Thomas 
Walter, "the travelling is excessive bad, I never saw it worse, 
nor more dangerous."-^ 

Only four days after the Third Congress had closed its 
labors, Jay's treaty with Great Britain was placed in Wash- 
ington's hands. With the greatest care he guarded it from 
the public eye and called the Senate in special session. The 
Senate gathered June 8, debated behind closed doors, and 
gave their ratification (excepting only one article). It also 
endeavored to continue Washington's policy of secrecy con- 
cerning the provisions of the treaty, but its caution was with- 
out avail, for one Senator rebelled and the full text became 
public property on July i. 

The Democratic Societies immediately raised a storm of 
protest. The treaty was denounced as grossly inadequate, 
as a proof of the Federal Party's truckling to England, as a 
betrayal of American rights. There were wild scenes in 
many places. Alexander Hamilton was stoned by a New 
York mob. 

Washington ratified the treaty In August, and then the anti- 
English wrath turned upon him and he was reviled In terms 
which he bitterly complained could scarcely be applied "even 
to a common pick-pocket."^^ 

"Original letter owned (1921) by Maria Whittelsey Norris, Grand Rapids, IMich. 
^Original letter in the possession (1921) of Ward Dix Kerlin, Camden, N. J. 
-'To Thomas Jefferson, July 6, 1796. — Ford, Writings of Washington, XIII, 231. 



3i6 ARTEMAS WARD [Age 68 

Abuse and political tirades continued for months, and 
the uproar intensified Ward's aversion for the Democratic- 
Republican following. "I hope," he wrote to his son Henry 
Dana (in South Carolina), "that you will shun the Southern 
politics as you would the poison of an asp, and indeavour to 
enlighten the dark minds of your legislators so far as you 
can with prudence. It's my opinion you may in time do much 
good in that way. It's through ignorance they do as they 
at this time do." 

In the same letter he earnestly defended the treaty. "Let 
them," he said, "compare the treaty made with Great Brit- 
ain with the treaties made with other Nations, particularly 
with that made with France. They will find privileges in the 
British treaty that are not in the French treaty, particularly 
the trade to the East Indias. Before the treaty, it was all 
upon sufferance in the British East Indias, and is now so in 
the French East Indias. I readily allow there are things 
in the treaty I could wish were otherwise, but at the same 
time I must say we had it not in power to have them other- 
ways. Upon the whole I think we had best be easy with it 
as it is, it's not to last always. What makes many uneasy 
with it is they are plague loth to pay the debts they owe to 
Great Britain." 25 

He also noted that the country towns of Massachusetts 
held themselves steadier than the capital — "those restless 
mortals in the metropolis have used every art to make the 
people uneasy in the Country, but have pretty generally 
failed." 

His viewpoint was justified by the results. The treaty, 
despite its defects, proved of substantial value. Trade im- 
proved and a fair degree of prosperity returned. 

France, though, was seriously disgruntled by the concord- 
ance of England and the United States and by the provisions 
of the treaty. 

^Original letter, February i, 1796, owned (1921) by Maria Whittelsey Norris, Grand 
Rapids, Mich. 



lygO^ AS A FEDERALIST 317 

Increasing age compelled Ward, this time, to adhere to 
his resolution to retire from the stress of political life, but 
for another three years he continued to preside as chief justice 
of the Worcester County Court of Common Pleas. 

His interest in affairs remained keen and his convictions 
were by no means softened. 

By correspondence with Dwight Foster, who had succeeded 
him as United States Representative, he kept himself in- 
formed on the political sentiments of the Fourth Congress. 

On January 15, 1796, shortly after it convened, he wrote 
asking "for a list of your house, the States they come from, 
with a mark for Federalists and one for Jacobins if any such 
there be." Those marked by Foster as Federal were not as 
numerous as Ward had hoped. Acknowledging the list, he 
says (March i, 1796), "I wish you had been able to have 
dotted more of the new members" ; and he adds as postscript, 
"I hope Congress will do no mischief." 

He termed "a peculiar smile in Providence" the intercep- 
tion of a letter written by Joseph Fauchet, French minister to 
the United States, which, with an earlier communication it 
dragged into the light, charged that at the time of the 
"Whiskey Insurrection" Edmund Randolph, Secretary of 
State — a strong opponent of the treaty with England — had 
solicited some thousands of dollars of French money on the 
plea that it was urgently needed to pay the debts of four 
men whose talents, influence, and energies might avail to 
fend off civil war in the United States, but who, as debtors, 
could make no move for fear of being thrown into prison 
by their English creditors. ^*^ 

"In my opinion," Ward continued, "it has had a tendency 
to silence the Jacobins who were forever declaiming against 
the Federalists, saying they were influenced by British Gold, 

~'^ A translation of Citizen Fauchet' s Intercepted Letter No. 10; to tvhich are added 
Extracts of Nos. 3 and 6, published in Philadelphia, 1795. Fauchet's explanation and 
qualified retraction appeared shortly after in A Vindication of Mr. Randolph's Resignation 
[of his office of Secretary of State on being confronted with Fauchet's letter]. The sub- 
ject is treated at length in Conway's Edmund Randolph. 



31 8 ARTEMAS WARD {Age 68-70 

Now we may conjecture with a good degree of certainty who 
would receive foreign bribes."-^ 

The second presidential term was drawing to a close. 
Washington declined to be a candidate for a third term, and 
so in the fall of the year there came the first real presidential 
contest — John Adams, the Federalist, against Thomas Jeffer- 
son, chief of the Democratic-Republicans. 

"There will be a great struggle," writes Ward, October 
10. "John Adams will I trust have the votes for President 
in New England & I trust some more. . . . Some talk of 
Thos. Pinckney for Vice President. I wish they may be 
chosen. It is of great importance we should have federal 
men in those places. 

"I hope we shall not have in either of those places a person 
so frenchified as some of the characters to the southward are. 
It seams some are so attached to the French they would do 
nothing without their leave. We are an Independant nation 
& we ought to act independently."-* 

Ward had the satisfaction of seeing John Adams elected 
to the presidency, but had to be content with Jefferson for 
Vice-President. (It will be remembered that in those days 
prior to the Twelfth Amendment a possible result of the 
vote of the electoral college was the election of a defeated 
presidential candidate as vice to his victorious opponent.) 

A little later, he saw the European conflict again drawing 
the United States toward war, this time through the depre- 
dations of French privateers; and it was not long before he 
was to read the famous X, Y, Z dispatches — the demands 
of agents of the French Directory for bribes and a large 
national loan — for "money, a great deal of money" — as the 
price of peace, and to see the country reverse its pro-French 
attitude and howl for war with France, using as their slogan 
Charles Cotesworth Pinckney's "millions for defense, but not 
one cent for tribute." 

"Original letter owned (1921) by Charles P. Greenough, Brookline, Mass. 

"* Original letter owned (1921) by Maria Whittelsey Norris, Grand Rapids, Mich. 



I7g6-ijg8^ RETIRES FROM PUBLIC LIFE 319 

By the summer of 1797 General Ward had begun to feel 
that his strength was unequal to his judicial duties. On June 
12, writing to his daughter Maria and her husband, Dr. 
Ebenezer Tracy, he says : "the lawyers in the general court are 
endeavoring to demolish the Courts of Common Pleas in this 
Commonwealth & to establish a circuit court in lieu thereof, 
and it is probable they will effect it. It don't affect me much 
for I shall soon leave that Court and confine myself at home. 
I am old & infirm, it is time for me to quit the theatre of 
action, and while I remain here live a domestic life."^^ 

He sat in court for the last time during the session of 
December, 1797, and soon after terminated his long career 
as a judge. ^^ 

He spent the remaining two years of his life in quiet retire- 
ment in his home, the now famous old Artemas Ward House. 

"His grandchildren lived to tell their grandchildren about 
the handsome old man, with his erect and portly figure set 
off with his ruffles and shoe-buckles and all the touches of the 
old time costume — how he would rise from his straight-backed 
chair and take from a shelf of a tall cupboard in his room, 
crackers, or raisins or some other dainty (as they were then) 
and give them as a reward for some little service they had 
done."^^i 

His letters show him, in his old age, as in his younger years, 
full of kindly love for his children and the members of their 
families — condoling with them in their afflictions, and rejoic- 
ing in their happiness, always keeping in the foreground the 
God he had served so conscientiously all his life, and incul- 
cating the same reliance in, and acceptance of, divine decrees. 
For himself, he was expecting the end and praying that he 
might be "prepared." 

"^ MS. copy, Artemas Ward MSS. 

^'' On March 20, 1798, writing to the Tracys, he says, "I have resigned the office of 
Judge in the Court of Common Pleas, it being too hard service for me to perform under 
my difficulties. I shall attend these courts no more." — Original letter owned (1921) by 
Frank C. Whittelsey, Flushing, N. Y. 

''^Elizabeth Ward, Old Times in Shrewsbury, 186. 



320 ARTEMAS WARD \_Age 70-72 

His health became precarious in 1798. On July 18, in 
a letter to the Tracys, he writes: "I have been much unwell. 
For four months I have not been one hundred rods from my 
house: in which time I longed to see you & for your advice. 
Through Divine goodness I am much better on some accounts, 
although far from being well. I am an old man upwards of 
seventy years of age, so that I have no right to expect to 
injoye perfect ease & comfort. We are told in scripture that 
threescore and ten years is the age of man; beyond that is 
grief and pain."^^ 

There is much the same story in the spring following. 
On March 6, 1799, again to the Tracys, he wrote: "My 
health is no better than when you saw me last, I have not 
been one hundred rods from my own house for more than 
twelve months. I have just recovered from a verry ill 
turn. "23 

In November he suffered a paralytic stroke and his life 
was despaired of, "but through divine goodness I was re- 
stored in a merciful degree." ^^ He was very weak though, 
unable to dress or undress without aid. 

His faithful correspondent, Dwight Foster, still kept him 
Informed on national politics. On December 28 Foster sent 
him "a List of the two Houses [of the Sixth Congress] 
marked ... to note the political Character by the 
Terms Federal, antifederal and doubtful," and wrote him 
that there was "little doubt" that the Federalists could muster 
"a respectable majority In the House of Representatives"; 
and that In the Senate there was "a majority as large, as re- 
spectable and as decided as there was previous to last March 
when one third were either re-elected or returned as new 
members."''^'' 

^"Original letter owned (1921) by Frank C. Whittelsey, Flusliing, N. Y. 

^■'Original letter owned (1921) by Mary Clap Wooster Chapter, D.A.R., New Haven, 
Conn. 

^'' To the Tracys, June 12, 1800. — Original letter owned (1921) by Frank C. Whittel- 
sey, Flushing, N. Y. 

•■'■'■' Original letter, Artemas IVard MSS. 



lygS-iSoo'^ HIS DEATH 321 

The Federal Party was nevertheless nearlng the end of its 
tenure. 

On the twentieth of March Ward suffered a second 
paralytic stroke, but it was lighter than the first and did 
not immediately affect his general condition to any marked 
extent. 

In the fall he failed rapidly, and on Tuesday, October 28, 
he lay dying. His son Thomas Walter wrote to Maria Tracy, 
teUing her of the approaching end — "there has been a great 
alteration In the good old gentleman for the worse. He is 
past speaking or taking anything unless it be a little water to 
wet his mouth." For twenty-four hours he had appeared 
almost unconscious of his surroundings. "I have no doubt 
he will make a happy change when he changes time for 
eternity. I shall feel the loss more than any one of my 
brothers or sisters, for I always have lived with him & it is 
hard to part with so good a Father, but it is the wish of 
God & we must not murmur nor complain." 

He died a little before seven of the evening of that day. 
He was occasionally "exercised with the same distressing 
pain" in his last hours that he had been troubled with "for 
months and years past," but he passed away easily with 
"scarce a struggle in death." ^" 

He was buried on the afternoon of the following Friday, 
October 31 — a "cloudy day with an easterly wind." A long 
procession of carriages formed his funeral cortege"''' and an 
impressive address marked the last rites. 

Thus closed the career of Artemas Ward, one of the worth- 
iest of Massachusetts' many noble sons. He had played a 
prominent part in the generation which founded the great 
republic of the United States. He haci stood In the fore- 
front of revolution when the challenge was thrown down to 

'"''Thomas Walter Ward to Maria Tracy, October 28 and November 6, iSoo.— Original 
letters owned (1921) by Frank C. Whittelsey, Flushing, N. Y. 

'■'Ruth Henshaw Bascom (original) diary. — Owned (1921) by Caroline Thurston, 
Leicester, Mass. 



322 ARTEMAS WARD \_Age 72 

the might of the British Empire, and had held equally reso- 
lute against the wrath of compatriots when it ran counter 
to the best interests of the state or nation. His had been 
a character of strength and stability which could be swayed 
neither by favor nor by fear; and a life of continuous industry 
from youth to old age. A character and a life well deserving 
a high place in the annals of Massachusetts. 

As he passed on, there closed not only the calendar years 
of the eighteenth century but also a well defined period of 
the history of the United States. Washington had died the 
year before. The Federal Party lost the fourth presidential 
election and never again achieved importance. A new chap- 
ter, embodying new thoughts and new conceptions, opened 
with the nineteenth century and the presidency of Thomas 
Jefferson. 



INDEX 



INDEX 



Abercromby, James, in command of 
the Ticonderoga campaign, 15; 
held in little respect, 18; his army 
bewildered in the forest, 21; or- 
ders the assault of Ticonderoga, 
22; the battle of Ticonderoga, 
y 23-25 
/Adams, John, his tribute to Ward, 
163-164; Federalist, 302; Vice- 
President, 307; President, 318 
Adams, Samuel, "master of the 
town-meeting," 32; elected Repre- 
sentative, 32; his close association 
with Ward, 34. 256; his congrat- 
ulations to Ward after the battle 
of Bunker Hill, 163, note; on the 
committee to visit Hampshire 
County to inquire into the unrest 
there, 264-267; his alienation 
from Ward by differing views on 
European policies, 309 
Arnold, Benedict, organising his de- 
tachment for the expedition to 
Quebec, 169-170 
. Artemas Ward House, 28-29, 281; 
view of, facing 282 

Baldwin Tavern, 4, note, 291 
>/ Bancroft, George, promulgated the 
theory that Ward was incompe- 
tent as commander-in-chief, 154; 
his inaccurate and unjust cita- 
tions, 154-164 

Barrington, Lord, his views and 
misconceptions, 138, note 

Belknap, Jeremy, his description of 
Ward, 182 



Bernard, Francis, cancels Ward's 
commission, 35-36; vetoes Ward 
as councilor, 39 

Boston, in 1757, 14; i" 1765, 32 1 
the "Boston Massacre," 44; the 
destruction of the tea cargoes, 52;^ 
the Port Act, 53-54; the closing 
of the port, 55-56; besieged by 
an army of militiamen, 88; map 
of, and environs, 1775, facing 92; 
the change in the English plans 
caused by the battle of Bunker 
Hill, 137-138; plans to assault, 
171, 181, 194, 199; instructions to 
abandon, 183'; not enough ships 
for the operation, 183; suffers 
from scarcity of supplies, 186, 
187; evacuation, 213 

Bowdoin, Jamess his contests with 
Hancock for the governorship, 
257, 270; warns Ward of the in- 
surgents' plan to make him a 
prisoner, 292; asks Ward's advice 
on the suppression of Shays' Re- 
bellion, 294; urges the General 
Court to effective action, 296 

Breed's Hill, description, 120. See 
also Bunker Hill 

Brinley Place, 167-168 

Bunker Hill, committee report, 
May 12, 1775, advising its for- 
tification, 105; set aside, 106; 
Committee of Safety, June 15, 
recommends its occupation, 116; 
the boldness of the project, 119; 
the order for its fortification, 
119; description, 120; order for 

5^5 



326 



INDEX 



the relief of the occupying detach- 
ment, 122-124; the substitution of 
Breed's Hill, 124; the battle, 125- 
134; the supply of provisions and 
drinking water, etc., 130, note; 
the "Judge Prescott account," 
123, note, 124, note; the "Prescott 
MS.," 123, note, 124, note; criti- 
cisms of the battle, 139-143; the 
night and the day after the battle, 
135-137; the battle the cause of 
the evacuation of Boston, 137- 
138. See also Charlestown Penin- 
sula 

Burgoyne, John, his descent from 
Canada and capture of Ticonde- 
roga, 243; his surrender, 248 

Charlestown Peninsula, its strategic 
importance, 92-93 ; the English 
plan to occupy, 116; its dimen- 
sions, etc., 120-121. See also Bun- 
ker Hill 

Chelsea engagement, 114 

Church, Benjamin, his early treach- 
ery, loi ; his order to Thomas to 
withdraw his men, 103 ; arrested 
as a traitor, 180 

Circular letter to the other colonies, 
39, 40 

Committee of Safety, established, 
74; resolves to enlist 8000 men, 
93; resents an order issued by 
Ward, 113, note; its Bunker Hill 
resolution, 116 

Committee of Supplies, established, 
75 

Committees of Correspondence, es- 
tablished, 46 

Connecticut troops in Massachusetts 
put under Ward, 145 

Continental Congress, delegates to, 
appointed by the Massachusetts 
House, 57; Ward in the, 255-260 



Cornwallis, Charles, surrenders at 
Yorktown, 261 

Dartmouth, Lord, advises the arrest 
of the Massachusetts patriot lead- 
ers, 84; sends instructions for the 
abandonment of Boston, 137-138, 
183; resigns as Secretary of State, 
184 

Day, Luke, 282 

Dearborn, Henry, 142 

Dearborn House, 168, note 

de Birniere, Henry, 82, 88 

Declaratory Act, 34 

Democratic Societies, 308, 310, 312, 
313-314 

DorchesterNeck(DorchesterHeights, 
Dorchester Point), its strategic 
importance, 92-93 ; early reports 
of the English plan to seize, loi ; 
American resolution. May 9, 
1775, to forestall the enemy, 102; 
fortification considered impracti- 
cable by Thomas, 104; neither 
side attempts the project, 104, 
105 ; fortification of the heights 
again considered and decided 
against, 106; surveyed in plan for 
occupation, June 6, 115; the Eng- 
lish plan to seize, 116; resolution, 
June 15, of an American council 
of war to occupy simultaneously 
with Bunker Hill, 117; its name, 
118, note; the English revive their 
plan to occupy, 146; Ward pre- 
vents its fulfilment, 146-147; 
Washington's council of war of 
July 9 decides not to attempt to 
take possession, 165; a council of 
war, November 2, discusses its 
occupation, 183; winter prepara- 
tions for its fortification, 191 ; 
reconnoitered by Washington, 
Ward, and other officers, 191- 
192; British raid on, 192; Wash- 



INDEX 



327 



ington's lukewarmness concerning Greene, Nathanael, 135, note, 145, 
its strategic value, 193; Ward, note, 153, note, 179, note, 182, 
February 16, 1776, again advo- note, 187, 199, 212, 213, 249 
cates its occupation, 194; the reso- Gridley, Richard, marks out a re- 
lution to take possession of the doubt on Breed's Hill, 124; at 

the fortification of Dorchester 

Heights, 203 



heights, 195; preparing for their 
seizure, 195-202; a report that 
the British were landing men 
on, 198; the fortification of the 
heights, 202-205. See also Nook 
Hill 
Dwight, Timothy, his tribute to 
Ward, 271 

Ely, Samuel, 262, 264 

"Fenno's Orderly Book," 99, note 
French Revolution, the disturbance 

it created in the United States, 

308 



Hamilton, Alexander, 302, 313, 315 

Hancock, John, president of the 
First Provincial Congress, 72; 
Massachusetts major-general in 
the second Rhode Inland expedi- 
tion, 249; his long delay in ac- 
counting for the funds of Har- 
vard College, 257; Ward's criti-\^ 
cism of, 258; his contests with ' 
Bowdoin for the governorship, 
257, 270 

Harvard College in 1744, 7-9 

_, _, 1 TT 1 • Hastings House, 90, note 

(jage, 1 nomas, succeeds Hutcnm- 

son as governor of Massachu- Heath, William, appointed fifth 



setts, 55 ; refuses to receive the 
address prepared by Ward, 56- 
57 ; rejoices at tory developments, 
59; fortifies Boston Neck, 68; 
worried by the activities of the 
country townships, 70; counter- 
mands his summons for a General 



Massachusetts general officer, 78, 
81 ; in the battle of Lexington 
and Concord, 88 ; appointed 
fourth continental brigadier-gen- 
eral, 150, note; succeeds to the 
command in Boston, 240; tells of 
a tory plot, 242 



Court, 70; his decision to assault Hillsborough, Lord, demands the 
Breed's Hill, 127; wishes to aban- rescinding of the "Circular Let- 
don Boston, 169 ter," 40 

Gates, Horatio, adjutant-general Holmes House, 90, note 

of the continental army, 147; j^^^^^ George, in the Ticonderoga 

agamst a musket attack on Bos- ' campaign, 18; his death, 20 



ton, 194; succeeds Schuyler in the 
north, 246; adulation of, after 
Burgoyne's surrender, 248, note 

Germain, Lord, succeeds Lord 
Dartmouth as Secretary of State, 
184 

Gerry, Elbridge, cited by Bancroft, 
154, 158-161 

"Glorious Ninety-Two," the, 40 



Howe, William, plan for raising the 
siege of Boston, 141 ; commander- 
in-chief, 183; receives word to 
abandon Boston, 183; unable to 
act upon it, 183; decides to assault 
the American fortifications on 
Dorchester Heights, 206; recon- 
siders and determines to give up 
the town, 209 



328 



INDEX 



Hutchinson, Thomas, defeated for Lexington and Concord, battle of, 



the Council by Ward, 39; his 
references to Ward, 40; his let- 
ters to England, 42, 48-49; suc- 
ceeded by Gage, 55 ; report of his 
flying to France, 178 

Impartial Administration of Justice, 
Act for the, 59-60 

Independence, Declaration of, read 
to the regiments, 228; formally 
declared in Boston, 229 

Jay, John, 233, note, 259; goes to 
England to negotiate a treaty, 
312; "Jay's Treaty," 315 

Jefferson, Thomas, his views on re- 
bellion, 299; Vice-President, 318; 
President, 322 

King's Arms (tavern), 61, note 
Knox, Henry, 188, 192 

Lafayette, Marquis de, 249 

Lee, Charles, captain in the Ticon- 
deroga campaign, 18; wounded in 
the battle of Ticonderoga, 25 ; re- 
turns to America as a major- 
general, 49-50; his military abil- 
ity, 50 and note; in Philadelphia, 
68-69; on a report that he had 
offered to lead the colonies in re- 
bellion, 69, note; aids the military 
organization of Maryland, 79; 
appointed second major-general 
of the continental army, 147, 149; 
the desire for his services, 149, 
159; his attitude on the appoint- 
ments of Washington, Ward, and 
himself, 149 and note; in charge 
of the left wing at the siege of 
Boston, 166; the growth of his 
military fame, 189, 233; fails to 
reinforce Washington, 236-237; 
captured by the English, 237 



87 
Lincoln, Benjamin, 225, 232, 246, 
268, 269, 295, 303 ; suppresses 
Shays' Rebellion, 296 

Loyalists. See Tories 

Majorbagaduce Peninsula. See 
Penobscot 

Massachusetts Constitutional Con- 
vention, 254, note 

Minute-men, their organization 
recommended by the Worcester 
County convention, 70; the Pro- 
vincial Congress advice on equip- 
ment, etc, 78-79; in the battle of 
Lexington and Concord, 88, note; 
James Warren wished they had 
never been organized, 108, note 

Nantucket Island, 261-262 

New Hampshire Grants. See Fer- 

mont 
Newport. See Rhode Island 
Nook Hill, 193, 196, 203; attempts 

to fortify, 210; fortified, 212 
North, Lord, 53, 160, 178 

Oliver, Peter, impeached for ac- 
cepting his salary from the crown, 
53 

Otis, James, 31, 36, 37, 39, 43, 44 

Penobscot, seizure by English, and 
American expedition against, 251- 
253 ; committee of investigation 
on failure of expedition, 252 ; fear 
that the English would extend 
their lines, 267 

Pierpont Castle, 167-168 

Pitt, William, 15, 19, 21, note. 

Pitts, John, 140, note 

Pomeroy, Seth, appointed third 
Massachusetts general officer, 75, 



INDEX 



329 



81 ; appointment as first continen- 
tal brigadier-general, 150, note 

Port Act, Boston, 53-56 

"Powder Alarm," 64 

Preble, Jedediah, appointed first 
Massachusetts general officer, 75, 
81 

Prescott, William, given command 
of the Bunker Hill detachment, 
119; in the battle of Bunker Hill, 
122-134 

Prescott account, Judge, 123, note, 
124, note 

Prescott MS., 123, note, 124, note 

Privateers, 218, 2ig, note, 224, 226, 
230, 310, 318 

Prospect Hill, 105, 134, 135 

Provincial Congress. First: 71-79; 
appoints a Committee of Safety 
and a Committee of Supplies, 75 ; 
elects general officers, 75, 78. 
Second: 80-82, 84-86; reelects 
general officers, 81 ; plans a New 
England army, 85, 86; declares 
for the raising of an army of 
13,600 men, 95 

Putnam, Daniel, letter cited, 126, 
note 

Putnam, Israel, major in the Ticon- 
deroga campaign, 18; urges the 
fortification of Bunker Hill, 105 ; 
in the Chelsea engagement, 114; 
in the battle of Bunker Hill, 125, 
128, 129, 134; on Winter Hill, 
135, note; appointed fifth conti- 
nental major-general, 1 50; under 
Washington, in charge of the cen- 
ter division, 166; to lead an as- 
sault on Boston, 199 

Putnam, Rufus, 192, 195, note, 203 

Raffles Collection, Thomas, 104, note, 

118 
Reed, James, in the battle of Bunker 



Hill, 126, note, 128, 132, 139, 
note 

Regulating Act, the, 59, 60 

Revere, Paul, 55, 87, 219, note, 251, 
252 

Rhode Island, troops in Massachu- 
setts put under Ward, 145; Eng- 
lish seizure of Newport, 235; a 
proposed expedition against the 
English, 241-242; the first expedi- 
tion against Newport, 247; the 
second expedition against New- 
port, 248-249; the "Battle of 
Rhode Island," 249 

Riflemen, 170, 179, 204 

Ruggles, Timothy, brigadier-gen- 
eral in the Ticonderoga campaign, 
18; chief justice of the Worcester 
County Court of Common Pleas, 
28, note; president of the Stamp 
Act congress, 33; votes to rescind 
the "Circular Letter," 40; ap- 
pointed a "mandamus councilor," 
60; organizes a tory Association, 
78; commandant of the "Loyal 
American Associaters," 181 

Sargent, Paul Dudley, criticizes 
Ward, 139, note 

Schuyler, Philip, fourth continental 
major-general, 150; New Eng- 
land's dislike of, 246; succeeded 
by Gates, 246; in the Continental 
Congress, 256 

"Second Court House," the, 282, 
note 

Shays, Daniel, 282, 293, 294, 295 

Shays' Rebellion, the growth of un- 
rest, 260, 262-267, 272-280; 
"Tender Acts," 264, 288; the 
prisoners for debt, 276-277, 279, 
297 ; open resistance and its de- 
velopment into rebellion, 281- 
296; Ward harangues the insur- 
gents from the steps of the 



330 



INDEX 



Worcester County court-house, 
285 ; the insurgents dispersed and 
the rebellion crushed, 296; the 
state and national results, 297- 
299 

Smallpox, 186, 220, 227, 229 

Southern fears of New England's 
domination, 68, 157, note, 182 

Spencer, Joseph, in command of a 
brigade of the right wing, 167; 
the first Rhode Island expedition, 
247 

Stamp Act, 31; its repeal, 34; com- 
pensation to riot victims and par- 
don to offenders, 36 

Stark, John, captain in the Ticon- 
deroga campaign, 18; at the battle 
of Bunker Hill, 125, 126 and note, 
128, 132, 139, note; after the bat- 
tle, 145, note; in the Burgoyne 
campaign, 244, 246 

Steuben, William von, 159, 172 

Stow's orderly book, Nathan, 123, / 
note, 135, note ' 

"Suffolk Resolves," the, 68 

Sullivan, John, 169, 199, 212; the 
second Rhode Island expedition, 
248, 249 

Sumner House, 10, 28, note 

Sun Tavern, 292 

Tea, taxation of, 37, 45, 50-52; de- 
struction of the tea cargoes, 52 

"Tender Acts," 264, 288 

Thomas, John, appointed fourth 
Massachusetts general officer, 78, 
81; takes stand at Roxbury, 92; 
receives Church's order to with- 
draw his men, 103; refuses to 
move them, 103 ; considered the 
occupation of Dorchester Neck 
impracticable, 104, 119; appointed 
first continental brigadier-general, 
150, note; in command of a bri- 



gade of the right wing, 167; heads 
the detachment to occupy Dor- 
chester Neck, 198; fortifies Dor- 
chester Heights, 202-205 

Ticonderoga, the campaign of, 1758, 
15-27; captured by Burgoyne, 243 

Tories, their strength and social 
importance, 32 ; the growth of a 
tory party, 59; an "Association" 
organized, 78; General Court 
committees to discover plans, 239, 
242-243 ; sentiment in Vermont, 
239-240 

Townsend, David, calls at head- 
quarters on the day of the battle 
of Bunker Hill, 129 

Townshend Act, 37; repeal of its 

taxation provisions, excepting tea, 

45 
Trenton, the effect of the battle of, 

238 
Trowbridge, Caleb, 9 
Trowbridge, Sarah (wife of Arte- 

mas Ward), lO, 281, note 

United States Arms (tavern), 286, 

292, 301 
United States Constitution, 298- 

299 

Vermont, tory sentiment in, 239- 
240 

Ward, Artemas, his birth, 3; the 
house in which he was born, 4; his 
boyhood, 5-6; he studies under 
the Reverend Job Cushing, 5 ; the 
decision to send him to Harvard 
College, 6; his admission to Har- 
vard College, 7; is graduated, gi) 
a school-teacher in Groton, 
Mass., 9; returns to establish 
himself in Shrewsbury, 10; makes 
his home in the Yellow House, 
10; opens a general store, 11; his 



INDEX 



331 



courtship and marriage, lO, ii;- 
appointed tax assessor, 11; justice 
of the peace, 1 1 ; receives the de- 
gree of A.M., 9. note; town clerk, 
12; selectman, 12; executor and 
residuary legatee of his father's 
estate, 13; major of a militia reg- 
iment, 13; Representative, 14; 
the call to arms on the fall of 
Fort William Henry, 14; enlist- 
ing men for the Ticonderoga 
campaign, 15; gives up storekeep- 
ing, 16; sets out for Ticonderoga, 
19; his diary of the expedition, 19, 
21, 22, 25, 26; promoted to lieu- 
tenant-colonel, 19; colonel of mi-\ 
litia, 27; colonel of an expedi- 
tionary regiment, 27; ill health 
compels his resignation of the 
expeditionary command, 27; town 
moderator, 28; church modera- 
tor, 28; town treasurer, 28; judge 
of the Worcester County Court 
of Common Pleas, 28; a justice 
of the peace "of the quorum," 28; 
on many legislative committees, 
28; sells the Yellow House, 28, 
note; buys the Artemas Ward 
House, 28-29; inspired by the 
protests on the Stamp Act, 31; 
his first appointment on a com- 
mittee of political protest, 33; his 
close political association with 
Samuel Adams, 34; his commis- 
sion as militia colonel revoked by 
Governor Bernard, 35-36 ; elected 
to the Council in a contest with 
Lieutenant-Governor Hutchinson, 
39; vetoed by Governor Bernard, 
39; as he appeared to Hutch- 
inson, and the latter's earlier 
failure to "bring him over," 40;'\ 
one of the "Glorious Ninety- ! 
Two," 40; representative in the 
"Committee of Convention," 40; 
again elected to the Council and 
again vetoed, 42; in a vote ap- 



proving a petition for the removal 
of Governor Bernard, 43; again 
elected to the Council and at last 
accepted, 45 ; on the committee 
protesting against the order mak- 
ing the judges of the Superior 
Court dependent on crown sup- 
port, 47; upholds the Samuel \ 
Adams party in the tea dispute, J 
52 ; prepares an address to Gov- 
ernor Gage, 56; Gage refuses to 
receive it, 57; a delegate to the 
Worcester County convention, 
61, 63; the closing of the courts, 
65-67; his old regiment puts him\ 
at its head, 70-71; a delegate to j 
the First and Second Provincial/ 
Congresses, 72, 80; member of a 
committee on "the state of the 
province," 73; appointed second 
Massachusetts general officer, 75, 
81; mentioned in de Berniere's 
report, 83; ill at the time of the 
battle of Lexington and Concord, 
89; rides to Cambridge to take 
charge of the army gathering 
around Boston, 89; as he ap- 
peared at the siege of Boston, 91 ; 
writes to the Provincial Congress 
imploring immediate action, 94; 
his urgent demands for equip- 
ment and materials resented by 
the Committee of Supplies, 98; 
his careful treatment of the Eng- 
lish prisoners of war, 99-100; his 
early views on the fortification of 
Bunker Hill, 105; urges the 
Provincial Congress to the imme- 
diate organization of an army, 
107; receives his commission as^ 
commander-in-chief, 108; faces 
the danger of anarchy — even his 
chief detractor testifies "we dare 
not superceed him here," 108- 
112; his need for gunpowder, 
115; surveys Dorchester Neck, 
115; his council of war resolves 



332 



INDEX 



for the simultaneous fortification 
of Bunker Hill and Dorchester 
Neck, 117; issues his orders for 
the fortification of Bunker Hill, 
119; reconnoiters Bunker Hill, 
120; the day of the battle of 
Bunker Hill, 125-134; Connecti- 
cut and Rhode Island troops for- 
mally put under his command, 
145; repeats his need for ordnance 
and supplies, 146; made first 
major-general of the continental 
army, 147, 150; entertains Wash-, 
ington on his arrival, 152; criti-/ 
cisms of him as commander-in->( 
chief, 154-164; in command of 1 
the right wing, 166; his headquar-; 
ters in Roxbury, 167-168; 
estrangement between Washing- 
ton and Ward, 174, 222; ap- 
pointed chief justice of the Court 
of Common Pleas for Worcester 
County, 181; Belknap's descrip- 
tion of, 182; reconnoiters Dor- 
chester Neck with Washington 
and other officers, 191-192; op- 
poses a musket attack on Boston, 
advocates instead the possession 
of Dorchester Heights, 194; is- 
sues his orders for the fortifica- 
tion of Dorchester Heights, 201 ; 
enters Boston, 213; because of ill\ 
health he tenders his resignation^ 
216; Washington's comments on\ 
his resignation, 216-217; Wash- i 
ington asks him to take the conti- 1 
nental command in Boston, he ac- ' 
cedes, 218; building works for the 
defense of the harbor, 220-221, 
223 ; repeats his desire to resign, 
222 ; his resignation accepted but 
Washington requests him to re- 
main, 223 ; again elected to the 
Council, 225 ; Congress requests 
him to continue in command, 231 ; 
major-general in a separate de- 
partment, 231; the Council asks 



him to command the state troops 
also, 232; hunting down tory 
plans, 239; turns the garrison 
over to Heath, 240; president of 
the Council, 241 ; chairman of a 
committee on a proposed Rhode 
Island expedition, 241-242; re- 
turns to Shrewsbury for the se- 
cret committee on tory move- 
ments, 243 ; president of the court 
of inquiry on the first Rhode 
Island expedition, 247; president 
of the committee of investigation 
of the failure of the Penobscot 
expedition, 252 ; elected to the , 
Continental Congress, 253 ; ar- ; 
rives in Philadelphia to attend,/ 
255; reciprocal esteem of Ward 
and Samuel Adams as members of 
Congress, 256; added to the Con- 
tinental Board of War, 256; on/ 
the committee of the Treasury 
Board report, 256; reelected to 
the Continental Congress, 257; 
his health very poor, 257; on a 
committee to try to bring Han- 
cock to a reckoning of the funds 
of Harvard College, 257, note; 
scores Hancock for neglect of 
state affairs, 258; on the "Grand 
Committee" of states, 259; re- 
elected to Congress, but declines, 
260; returns to the Massachu- 
setts House of Representatives, 
261 ; elected Massachusetts sena- 
tor, but declines, 261 ; appointed 
Judge of Probate of Wills, but 
refuses to accept, 261 ; on many 
legislative committees, 261 ; on 
the committee to visit Hampshire 
County to inquire into the unrest 
there, 264-267; the committee 
thanked by the Hampshire County 
convention and commended by the 
legislature, 267; his comment on 
Washington's letter concerning a 
proposed movement against Pe- 



INDEX 



333 



nobscot, 269; his opinion of Han- 
cock, 270; Timothy Dwight's 
tribute, 271; Speaker of the 
House, 281 ; enlarges his home by 
the addition of the "New Part," 
281; harangues the insurgents of 



early days in Massachusetts, 5; 
purchases the Yellow House and 
surrounding property, lO, note; 
deeds the Yellow House and 
farm to Artemas Ward, 11, note; 
his death, 13 



Shays' Rebellion, 285; warned Ward, Captain Nahum (son of Ar- 

that the insurgents plan to retali- temas Ward), 247 

ate on him, 292; Governor Bow- ^^^^^ Thomas Walter (son of Ar- 

doin writes for his suggestions ^^^^^ ^^^^^^ ^46, 281 

and advice, 294; candidate for 

Ti . .• 4. 4.U TT^-.f^A Ward Homestead, bee Artemas 

Representative to the United 

States Congress, 300; defeated, ^f ard House 

300; again a candidate for Repre- Ward's Order Book, 99, note 

sentative to the United States "Ward" township, 250 



Congress, 301 ; elected, 301 ; 
aligns himself with the Federal- 
ists, 302 ; his opinion of the elec- 
torate, 303 ; supports many Wash- 
ington policies, 305; his remarks 
concerning speechmakers, 306; 
rejoices at the victories of the 
French revolutionists, 307, 312; 
reelected to the third United 
States Congress, 308; supports/ 
Washington in preventing war 
with England, 309, 311; European 
policies separate him and Samuel 
Adams, 309; his sympathies with 



Warren, James, wishes the minute- 
men had never been organized, 
108, note; testifies that "we dare 
not superceed" Ward, 112, 162, 
note, 163 ; his criticisms of Ward, 
142, 162-163; President of the 
Provincial Congress, 151; cited by 
Bancroft, 154; his petulancy, 163, 
note; on a committee to discover 
tory plans, 239; appointed to the 
command of the militia ordered 
to Rhode Island, 244; refuses to 
go and resigns his commission, 
245 



all those struggling for political u 1 • «c re 11 c 

, J . ■ ^ \- ^^ Warren, Joseph, his "Suffolk Re- 

freedom, 309; terminates his po- » co u- i • t-U 



litical career, 314; his views of 
"Southern politics," 316; defends 
"Jay's Treaty" with Great Brit- 
ain, 316; ends his long career as a 
judge, 319; his death, 321 
Ward, Joseph, asks for government 
office and transmits alleged plans 
of revolutionaries in New Eng- 



solves," 68 ; his early views on the 
fortification of Bunker Hill, 105; 
writes of the peril of anarchy, 
no, note; in the Chelsea engage- 
ment, 114; rides to the battle-field 
of Breed's Hill, 129; his death on 
Bunker Hill, 134; untrue that he 
considered Ward inefficient as 
commander-in-chief, 154-158 



land, 90, note; secretary to Ward, ^^^j^.^g^^^^ ^^^^^^^ ^^^^^j^^ ^^, 



90 

Ward, Martha (mother of Artemas 
Ward), 3; her parentage, 4 

Ward, Nahum (father of Artemas 
Ward), 3; a man of importance 
in his community, 4; his stories of 



tides for a Virginia non-importa- 
tion agreement, 44; impresses the 
Continental Congress, 68; his 
election as commander-in-chief of 
the continental army, 147, 148, 
note; arrives in Cambridge, 151; 



334 



INDEX 



eralist, 302 ; unanimously re- 
elected President, 307; his stand 
for neutrality in the European 
conflict, 309; his charge against 
the Democratic Societies, 313; 
his policy of secrecy concerning 
the provisions of "Jay's Treaty," 
315; ratifies the treaty, 315; is 
grossly reviled, 315 



dines with Ward, 152; takes com- 
mand of the army, 152; holds his 
first formal council of war, 165 ; 
rendered reckless by inaction, 
170; wishes to attack Boston by 
rowboats, 171; his failure to im- 
press professional military stand- 
ards on his army, 172; estrange- 
ment between Washington and 
Ward, 174, 222; perplexed byj ^g^t,^ Samuel B., 139, note 
Howe's movements, 185; unjustly ^,_, . , , 

.^. . J f • .• •. ^00. 1 i.„ Whiskey Insurrection, 313 
criticized for inactivity, 108; luke- ^ > o j 

warm concerning the occupation Whitcomb, Asa, drives the English 
of Dorchester Neck, 193, 198; ships from Boston harbor, 225- 
proposes a musket attack on Bos- 226 

ton, 194; the fortification of Dor- Whitcomb, John, lieutenant-colonel 
Chester Heights, 195-205; his \^ in the Ticonderoga campaign, 18; 
comments on Ward's resignation, ' sixth Massachusetts general of- 
216-217; asks Ward to take the fleer, 81; first Massachusetts 
command in Boston, 218; requests major-general, 161, note 
Ward to remain despite the ac- ^j^^^^. ^ju^ ^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^^ 
ceptance of his resignation by , 
Congress, 223; feels that "the Worcester County Convention, 61- 
game is pretty near up," 237; ^^' ^3, 64-67, 69-70. 79-8o; 
wins at Trenton and again at 'closes the county courts, 65-67 
Princeton, 238; forces the surren- 
der of Cornwallis at Yorktown, Yellow House, 10; presented to 
261; asked to drive the English Ward by his father, 11, note; 
from Penobscot, 268; could not Ward's home court, 12; pur- 
comply, 268; suspicious of Great chased by the Reverend Joseph 
Britain's part in Shays' Rebellion, Sumner, 28, note 
289-290; as the first President, Yorktown, the surrender of Corn- 
visits New England, 301 ; Fed- wallis, 261 



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